Roasted tomato coconut & quinoa soup

Roasted tomato coconut & quinoa soup – sweet late summer tomatoes, roasted to intensify their flavor, caramelized onions, creamy coconut milk, and warm spices all blended into an aromatic, chunky soup, with an added nutritional boost of quinoa.

It’s that time of the year again – the lingering summer end; the slow transition between seasons, carrying with it a vague sense of sadness and loss; a subtle change in the weather, as the days get shorter, but are still hot, and the mornings get a little chillier, but still feel comfortably warm; a last call for peaches, and first taste of pumpkin; the inevitable change of rhythm and shift in perspective; the involuntary instinct for nesting, and all things cozy; the beginning of the end of the year.

I’m not quite a fall person.  I love my summer, and I always have a hard time letting go.  On the bright side, it’s the only time of the year when you can pair tomatoes and pomegranates (I’m thinking of this awesome Ottolenghi salad), and you can snack on figs while you think about your first pumpkin dish.  I can’t help it, it’s catchy, but I usually don’t give in to the pumpkin obsession until the first serious cold day.  Until then, I’m getting my hands full of summer goodies.

Despite the cornucopia of early fall and late summer produce at the market stalls, I still gravitate mostly toward the last tomatoes of the season – ripe and heavy, warm and bursting with flavor, they are at their sweetest.  I buy them by the crateful, trying to cook as many tomato dishes as I can.   I make a big batch of this tomato sauce, and freeze for later, or puree them into cold soups like salmorejo; slow-roast them with olive oil and garlic, for a great salad add-on, or just eat them in salads like this one, or this.   I also recently  made this roasted tomato, coconut & quinoa soup a few times in a row, and happily ate it all week long.

In a sense, it’s a transitional recipe – it takes full advantage of the sweetness of fresh tomatoes, but it’s also a comforting warm, rustic sort of soup, the kind you crave on a cold, rainy day.

So here, on the last day of summer, I’m sharing one easy tomato recipe.  This is for you, passionate tomato lovers who don’t want to part with summer yet.  Just make sure you get the sweetest, freshest tomatoes from the farmer’s market.

Print

Roasted tomato coconut quinoa soup

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

Total Time

55 mins

 

Roasted tomatoes, quinoa, caramelized onions, sweet coconut milk, and warm spices all blended into an aromatic, chunky soup.

Course: Soup

Servings: 4

Calories: 260 kcal

Author: Viktoria

Ingredients

• 2 lbs 'early girl' tomatoes (or other sweet variety) *
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 Tbs coconut oil
• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa **
• 1/2 cup coconut milk (or cream)
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups vegetable broth
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp garam masala (or more cinnamon)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 Tbs balsamic vinegar

Coconut garlic oil

• 1 Tbs coconut oil (or butter/ghee)
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp garam masala

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425° F.

2. Cut the tomatoes in half or quarters if big, drizzle with the olive oil, and roast for 30 minutes.  

3. While the tomatoes are roasting, heat 2 Tbs coconut oil in a pan, add the chopped onions, turn the heat to medium-low and cook until they are soft and caramelized (15 minutes).

4. Transfer the roasted tomatoes, and caramelized onions to a blender, add the broth, and blend for a few seconds till your desired consistency.   Transfer to a soup pot, add the spices, salt to taste, and the cooked quinoa, bring to a slow  boil.  Cook for 15 minutes.

5. Add the pressed garlic, coconut milk, and balsamic vinegar, and cook for 1-2 more minutes.   Taste and adjust the salt/sugar if needed.   Serve topped with toasted coconut chips, or coconut cream, or a drizzle of coconut garlic oil (see below)

   
   

Coconut garlic oil

1. Melt 1 Tbs coconut oil over low heat, and add the sliced garlic.  Cook for a minute, then add the cinnamon and garam masala and cook for 30 more seconds.  Use immediately to drizzle over the soup.

Recipe Notes

* If your tomatoes are not quite sweet, you may add 1-2 tsp sugar to the soup.

** To cook quinoa, rinse it well, and add 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water in a pot.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cook for 20 minutes.