Summer Soup, Part 2

Despite the pepper cobbler fiasco, those 99-cent peppers still needed to be cooked.

Roasted Tomato and Pepper Soup sounded like the perfect summer refresher that would taste good and use my peppers; I liked the idea of roasted tomato flavor paired with mild heat and the refreshing zing of mint.

Alas, despite the fact that it's summer and my tomatoes looked perfect, they weren't the most flavorful of specimens. Adding brown sugar and cinnamon helped coax out a little more flavor, but add brown sugar with a light hand—what tastes good in the first bite can turn cloying after the flavors mingle a littl emore. Roasting the peppers and other veggies delivers an intense flavor, that, like the beet soup, is best in smaller amuse bouche portions lest you wear out your palate.

Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Soup
Adapted from Epicurious.com

1 1/4 pounds tomatoes, halved and cored
4 medium red chile peppers, quartered and seeded
1 small onion, sliced
4 large garlic cloves, smashed
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint (optional)

Preheat broiler.

Toss tomatoes, red peppers, onion, and garlic with oil and coriander in a large roasting pan and broil about 4 inches from heat until edges of vegetables are charred, about 7 minutes. Stir vegetables, then broil until vegetables are tender, about 3 minutes more.

Purée vegetables with any juices from pan in a food processor until smooth. Mix in remaining ingredients except mint. Taste and add more brown sugar if necessary, 1/4 teaspoon at a time.

Cool soup, uncovered, 30 minutes, then chill, covered, until cold, at least 2 hours. Just before serving, garnish with chopped mint.

Serves 4.