Creamy Tomato Soup With Buttery Croutons (Food And Wine) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, very thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, smashed
5 cups canned whole tomatoes in their juice (use three 14 ounce cans if not using fresh or canned)
1 cup water
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
4 thick slices bread, crusts trimmed and bread cut into 3/4 inch dice

Preparation

In a large saucepan, melt a tablespoon of the butter in a tablespoon of the olive oil.
Add the sliced onion and smashed garlic and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened about 5 minutes.
Add the tomatoes and their juice, the water, heavy cream, sugar, crushed red pepper, celery seed, and oregano and season with salt and pepper.
Bring the soup to a boil over high heat, breaking up the tomatoes with the back of a spoon. Reduce the heat to moderate and simmer for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small skillet, cook the remaining tablespoon of butter over moderately high heat until it begins to brown, about 1 minute.
Scrape the browned butter into a medium bowl. Add the olive oil to the skillet. Add the diced bread and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until it is slightly browned, about 6 minutes. Transfer the bread to the browned butter and toss well.
Working in batches, transfer the tomato soup to a blender and puree until smooth.
Return the soup to a clean pot and rewarm the soup if necessary.
Season the soup with salt and pepper.
Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with the croutons.