My very favorite soup of all time? Tomato Florentine from Zio's Italian restaurant. Ahhhh, it is so good. It is creamy and full of rich tomato flavor and has DILL in it. That makes this a really unique soup. It's not overwhelming, but its there in the background, just hanging out, mixing with everything else. It's so incredibly good. I've been eating this soup in the restaurant for at least 10 or 12 years now, and I've also been searching for a copy cat for this recipe for just as long. I had given up ever finding one.
And then, I did.
I stumbled across this recipe at Food.com and went ahead and printed it. I've been so disappointed over the years, I didn't want to get my hopes up. I finally grabbed what I needed to make the soup (which is surprisingly few things that I didn't already have on hand) and set out to make it, assuming it would be just for me. Scott hates dill. HATES dill. Well, I think what we discovered is that Scott hates dill pickles, but dill itself is okay (I've always wondered, because he can drink Ranch dressing by the bucket....which is full of dill).
It's a process, that's for sure. It's not hard, just a lot of steps. I also HIGHLY recommend you mise-en-place before you begin. It is always a good idea, but for this, it is really helpful. I got through the first half, was letting it simmer and I kept smelling it. It certainly smelled correct. I kept on with the steps and finally scooped a bowl full of the soup, topped with some fresh grated Parmesan and nervously took my first bite.
It is EXACTLY like the soup they serve at Zio's. I have found it. My decade long search is over. This recipe is an exact copy cat of theirs. Ooooh, happy day! And, because it smelled good and curiosity finally got the better of him, Scott had a bowl. And damn near picked it up to lick it clean. He really enjoyed it! (I'm pretty sure he hates the VINEGAR in the dill pickles, not the dill now that I've seen him scarf down a bowl of soup with lots of dill in it)
If you are interested, here is the recipe I used (linked above too). Enjoy!!!!!!
FYI - this is the recipe word for word from Food.com - and I followed it exactly this time to see if it is an exact copy (it is) - but next time I'd likely use real chicken stock instead of bouillon but the rest is spot on.
Oh, one quick tip - if you aren't used to making a roux....when the recipe says to let it get to a certain color, please do. Common mistake is to not cook it long enough, then your roux will taste like raw flour (which is disgusting) and it will make your whole pot of soup taste like raw flour (yuck).
Tomato Florentine Soup (like Zio's)
- 3 tbsp flour
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3/4 Cup diced onion
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp fresh garlic (I used the jarred, already minced kind)
- 3 chicken boullion cubes
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (you could use diced, but then you'll have to blend it)
- 1 tbsp ketchup
- 3/4 cup vegetable juice
- 1/2 tbsp dried basil
- 2 tbsp dried dill
- 1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce (I used Frank's - I put that shit on everything! LOL)
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp dry white wine
- 2 cups heavy cream (oooh yeeeeaaah baby!)
- 1/2 cup fresh spinach, julianned
Make the roux and set aside to cool. Heat 3 tbsp butter in a heavy sauce pan over medium heat until bubbling. Whisk in flour and cook until the color of straw. DO NOT WALK AWAY and DO NOT STOP WHISKING. This is the biggest mistakes people make when trying to make a roux. It can burn in the blink of an eye. Once you have the desired color, remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Saute the onions in 2 tbsp butter until softened and translucent (do NOT hurry this step or you'll get burnt onions instead of caramelized - be patient). Add the garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Don't go too long once you add the garlic. Garlic burns very easily. Pour this onion/garlic mixture into a food processor and blend until fully pureed.
Dissolve 3 chicken bouillon cubes in 1 cup boiling water.
In a dutch oven or soup pot, heat tomatoes, ketchup, vegetable juice and chicken stock over low heat. Once heated, add purred onion mixture, basil, dill, hot pepper sauce, sugar, black pepper and wine. Stir to fully combine and simmer for 15 minutes.
Whisk in your cooked roux and simmer an additional 30 minutes.
Whisk in your heavy cream, stir in your spinach and serve!
Serve with Parmesan, extra bits of spinach, Zio's adds croutons to theirs (I never eat them). I simply added Parm to the top of ours and made Scott a grilled cheese sandwich to go with it. Yummmo!
