Tomato lover? Here's how you can tell.

You own and use wall-o-waters.
You may or may not admit to saving egg shells to add to your soil where you plant tomatoes.
You grow heirlooms for flavor adventure but know they take forever to ripen so you have hybrids too.
You have tried several types of cages and almost drooled when they finally started selling heavier gage wire cages in cute colors.
You don't buy store tomatoes.
You would rather NOT have a tomato than eat one that tastes like cardboard.

If you are overflowing with tomatoes it's time to FREEZE them. Yes, you know I am obsessed with freezing everything but this one is a no brainer. Quarter, (freeze on a silpat), pile and cram until your gallon bag is bulging. We use these frozen tomatoes several ways:

in our fruit and veggie smoothies
in tomato bisque soup
in tortilla soup (will post in a few weeks)

Today, I share with you my Tomato Bisque soup that can be made with fresh or frozen tomatoes.

Oh and if you were wondering if it were any good ... ALL 5 of us eat it. That says A LOT!

AND I served it to friends at a Christmas party last year.

DINNER GUEST WORTHY RECIPE!

Tomato Bisque

8-10 cups quartered tomatoes
1 large onion, sliced
6-8 garlic cloves, peeled
4 Tbsp butter
4 Tbsp olive oil
6-8 Tbsp whole wheat flour (white whole wheat or regular whole wheat)
5 cups water
5-8 Tbsp Bouillon ( I use the Organic Better than Bouillon Chicken Flavor)
2 bay leaves
1/4-1/2 tsp powdered thyme (or 2 fresh sprigs if you have it)

If using frozen tomatoes, set them out a few hours ahead of time. I just dump 1/2 a gallon sack into my 8 cup Pyrex mixing bowl. They need to be able to blend down and be smooth so you don't want them frozen solid. You can also thaw in the microwave and add some of the water (5 cups) it calls for toward the end of the recipe to thin them down so they can blend smoothly.

Blend 1/2 the tomatoes in your high powered blender until seeds are obliterated.

In a large saucepan or medium sized pot add butter and oil over medium heat. CAREFULLY add onion and garlic and sauté until soft and translucent.

Add 6-8 Tbsp whole wheat flour to onion mixture to form a roux. Cook for a minute, stirring constantly, to cook the raw flavor out of the flour.

Add roux to blender with 1/2 the tomatoes you all ready blended smooth. Blend mixture until smooth. It will take a minute or so on high to get the texture smooth and lovely. Add mixture back to the pot. Blend remaining tomatoes until smooth and add to your pot. Add water ( I measure with the tomatoey blender to rinse out the goodness into my pot not the sink), boullion, bay leaves and thyme. Let it simmer for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves and fresh thyme (if you used it). ENJOY!!!!

Each packed 1 gallon bag makes 2 batches of soup.

We love tomato soup with grilled cheese. We discovered cutting the sandwich into soldiers (rectangles) made for a better dipping experience.

Freeze your tomatoes! Do it now and pack away as many as you can.

Last year I froze about 15 gallons for our family. I only have 4 1/2 gallons as of today but give me a week or two and all I'll have my 15 gallon supply of tomatoes all nestled away in their icy tomb.

Stay tuned for a similar tomato based recipe for Tortilla Soup in a few weeks. Another awesome recipe to use up your tomatoes when the chill sets in!

Subscribe below so you don't miss the Tortilla Soup Recipe - it will go straight to your inbox!

Happy Freezing!

Brooke