What started as clean out fridge soup, has become our family favorite. It's healthy, hearty and full of flavor.  Serve it with some crusty sour dough and enjoy!  

This recipe yields 6 to 8 servings. 

Ingredients :
3 lbs of tomatoes, (mix of cherry, plum, grape, vine ripened, etc*)  
4 large cloves of garlic (3 whole, 1 minced)
3 large shallots, cut in quarters
3 small celery sticks, peeled and chopped(a little more than a cup) 
2 small carrots, peeled and copped(a little more than a cup)
½ large onion chopped
6 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
32 oz of good vegetable stock, unsalted(home made or my preferred brand is Kitchen Basics)
3 cups water
1/3 cup heavy cream
¼ tsp crushed Aleppo pepper* 
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil

Directions :
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut larger tomatoes in half or ¼ depending on the size.  Leave grapes and cherries whole.  Spread tomatoes, 3 garlic cloves, shallots and thyme on a baking tray.  Drizzle 3 tbsp of oil and  season with salt and black pepper. Roast for 30 min or until the tomatoes and shallots start to lightly caramelize.
While the tomatoes are roasting, in a large pot, add 2 tbsp of olive oil, minced garlic, chopped onion, celery, carrots and bay leaves.  Season with salt and black pepper and stir  Cook until softened.  Add the liquid(stock and water) to the pot.  Let gently simmer for 10 min. 
Once the tomatoes are done, remove tray from oven, remove the thyme stems, just use the leaves. Add the contents of the tray to the pot and bring to a simmer   Cook for 10 more minutes.  Turn off heat and remove the bay leaves from the pot.  Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth.   Add cream and the Aleppo pepper.  Adjust the seasoning by adding more salt if needed.  You most likely will need to add more salt.
Garnish with a few drops of cream and a pinch of Aleppo pepper. 
*Note -  for this recipe, I used yellow and red grapes, plum and sweet vine ripened tomatoes. You can use Cayenne as a substitute for Aleppo pepper, but reduce the amount of cayenne as it is spicier than the Aleppo. 

About This Recipe
"I wanted to make a soup at Thanksgiving which celebrated my Indian Heritage as well as my life in America. Being a vegetarian myself, I know how hard it is to find soups which are friendly to vegetarians and vegans. This is a great soup for Vegans as it uses coconut milk instead of cream. It is a sweet and spicy soup."
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Ingredients
3 tablespoons grapeseed oil or 3 tablespoons canola oil
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
1 1/4 cups onions, chopped
1 1/4 cups carrots, chopped
4 celery ribs, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 scallions, chopped
32 ounces vegetable stock ( unsalted)
2/3 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed, Toasted and ground
1/2 teaspoon cayenne ( add more or less depending on spice preference)
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/3 teaspoon garam masala
salt
pepper
 
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Directions
 
1.Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2.Place butternut squash in a cookie sheet, drizzle with 2 tbsp of oil, sprinkle 1/4 tsp of salt and pepper.
Roast until squash is tender but not mushy. Stir the squash during the roasting process for even cooking.
3.While the squash is roasting, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and celery.
Once the onion is translucent, add garlic and green onion, stir and cook for 1 minute. Turn the heat on low, add all the spices to the pot, stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add roasted squash and stock. Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off heat. Puree soup using a stick blender or in a blender. (If using a blender, pour soup back in pot).  Stir in coconut milk. Salt and pepper to taste. Turn heat on low and warm through.