Fresh Tomato Soup with Seared Eggplant Sandwiches
- About ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 medium onions, chopped into ¼-inch dice
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 beautiful eggplant (about 10 ounces), sliced ½ inch thick into 8 slices
- 2 cups water
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil, plus 4 leaves for garnish
- ¼ cup Pesto
- Four ¼-inch-thick slices fresh mozzarella (about 2 ounces)
- Four ½-inch-thick slices rustic bread, about the same size as the eggplant slices
Instructions:
This dish shows how even old standbys can sometimes be reworked so they become vivid and fresh again.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and sugar, lower the heat, and cook for 25 minutes.
- While the tomatoes are cooking, season 8 eggplant slices with salt and pepper. (If you have more than 8 slices, set the remainder aside for another use or discard.) Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the eggplant slices and sear on each side until golden brown and cooked through. Remove from the heat and let cool.
- Add the water to the tomatoes and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Purée in a blender and strain through a fine sieve. Return the tomato soup to the pot, add the chopped basil, and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Spread the eggplant slices with the pesto. Put a slice of mozzarella on 4 of the slices. Top with the remaining 4 eggplant slices, pesto side down, to make “sandwiches.”
- Brush the bread with about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and place on a small baking sheet. Toast in the oven until golden brown. Top each slice with an eggplant sandwich and continue heating until the cheese begins to melt.
- While the sandwiches are heating, reheat the tomato broth.
- Place an eggplant sandwich in the bottom of each warm bowl. Pour the tomato broth around the sandwiches. Drizzle with olive oil, garnish with the basil leaves, and serve immediately.