Fresh Tomato Soup with Garlic Toasts

Claire’s Corner Copia, New Haven’s beloved vegetarian restaurant, will celebrate 46 years this month. The eatery has expanded into its original corner storefront location at Chapel and College Streets.

The Prompter recently checked in with owner Claire Criscuolo, “New Haven is simply not as interesting and not as entertaining without Yale Rep! We can’t wait to be in the audience once again.”

As many of you already know, Claire’s recipes have been published in a series of four cookbooks, which are available for purchase at the restaurant. Here is her recipe for a terrific summer tomato soup with rice.

Claire adds, “The recipe is a great, end of summer, September soup. Early September is a time when there is an abundance of gorgeous summer tomatoes. And, this soup highlights those beautiful tomatoes. And, it’s a healthy, antioxidant filled, lycopene rich soup, too.”

Claire’s Corner Copia at 1000 Chapel Street is open from 9AM to 9PM every day except Tuesdays.

At the end of summer, when home gardens and farms are overflowing with fragrant ripe tomatoes, my thoughts always turn to this soup. I prepare it with plum, cherry, and beefsteak tomatoes, but any combination is fine, just as long as they are ripe and fresh. While vine-ripened tomatoes are now available year-round, the cost tends to be astounding, so you might want to save this recipe for summer.

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large sweet onion (Vidalia is best), finely chopped
• 1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
• 5 pounds ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped, including the juices
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 quarts water
• 1/4 cup Arborio rice (Italian risotto rice)

Garlic Toasts:

• 2 Tablespoons extra version olive oil
• 3 large cloves garlic, finely minced
• 8 1/2-inch thick slices Italian bread

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic, tomatoes, parsley, oregano, and rosemary. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stir to mix. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft and have released their juices.

Add the water. Raise the heat to high, cover, and bring to a boil. Remove the cover and lower the heat to medium. Cook, uncovered, at a medium boil, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour, or until the soup is reduced slightly. Stir in the rice. Continue cooking at a medium boil, stirring frequently, for another hour, or until the rice is soft.