Roasted Tomato Soup with Sweet Onion

Preheat an oven to 325°F.

To make the roasted tomatoes, cut the tomatoes in half and place, cut side up, on a baking sheet. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, pepper and thyme. Spoon the mixture evenly over the tomatoes. Bake until the tomatoes are soft and wrinkled, about 1 hour. Set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring often and reducing the heat as needed to prevent scorching, until the onion is soft, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the wine, increase the heat to high and boil until the liquid is evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the broth and tomatoes, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan used to roast the tomatoes, and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes to blend the flavors.

In a blender or food processor, puree the soup, in batches if necessary, until smooth. Alternatively, pass the soup through a food mill. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper.

Ladle the soup into warmed bowls, garnish with the parsley and serve with toasted sourdough bread. Serves 4 to 6.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Eat Well, by Charity Ferreira (Oxmoor House, 2008).