Creamy Tomato Rice Soup

PREP TIME

5 min.

COOK TIME

25 min.

Serving Size

4 servings

Homemade soup that’s ready in less than half an hour. The on-hand ingredients comes to the rescue on a busy weeknight. Serve with a grilled cheese sandwich or simply a crusty whole grain bread and a salad.

Ingredients

1 Tbsp (15 mL) butter, for cooking
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp (7 mL) dried basil, oregano or Italian seasoning
salt and pepper
1 can (28 oz./796 mL) diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup (250 mL) reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
2 Tbsp (30 mL) all-purpose flour
2 cups (500 mL) milk
1 cup (250 mL) cooked brown rice or mixed grains
1/2 tsp (2 mL) granulated sugar optional
chopped fresh chives

Directions

1.	In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, basil, and 1/4 tsp (1 mL) each of salt and pepper; cook, often stirring, for 5 minutes or until tender. Add tomatoes and broth; cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and boil gently, covered, for 10 minutes, or until tomatoes are very soft. Remove from heat.
2.	Using an immersion blender in a pot or transferring soup in batches to an upright blender, purée soup until smooth. Return to pot, if necessary.
3.	Whisk flour into milk and gradually pour into the pot while whisking constantly. Stir in rice; cook over medium heat, often stirring, for about 5 minutes, or until slightly thickened and steaming. Season to taste with sugar (if desired), pepper, and up to 1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt.
4.	Ladle soup into warm bowls and sprinkle with chives.

Recipe and photo are provided by Dairy Farmers of Canada. For more recipe ideas, visit dairygoodness.ca.

Tips

Make a double batch of this soup, serve it plain one night, and then stir in chopped cooked chicken, drained rinsed kidney beans, and chopped fresh basil for a quick minestrone soup the next.
Tip for kids: use fun shapes of cookie cutters to cut croutons from whole grain bread. Toast the croutons, then sprinkle with shredded Canadian Mozzarella cheese, and broil to serve with the soup for dunking or to float on top.
For the adventurous: for a Curried Tomato Soup, omit the basil, add 2 tbsp (30 mL) minced ginger root, and 1 tbsp (15 mL) Indian yellow curry paste or powder with the garlic. Replace the chives with cilantro.