Roasted red pepper, tomato soup with sesame and parsley

A simple soup with a lot of bright colour. Served here with socca, but fresh bread, crackers or potatoes all make good accompaniments.

Ingredients

1 cup vegetable stock
1/4t coarse sea salt
1 red pepper, roasted, cored, seeded and peeled
1 cup tomato passata (or puree)
1/2T fresh garlic, minced (reserve a little for the garnish)
1t herbes de Provence (or similar)
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, minced (1 – 2T reserved for garnish)
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

For the garnish
1/2T sesame seed butter
1T white pickling vinegar
1T unsweetened soy milk
1/2t fresh garlic, minced (as noted above)
1/4t coarse sea salt (or to taste)
1 – 2T parsley (as noted above)

Optional: A tablespoon or so of nutritional yeast will add flavour and nutrition.

Method
Preheat the oven to 450F and roast the pepper until the skin is charred (or use the stove top method if you have a gas stove). Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Peel, seed and core the pepper. Chop roughly.

Bring a medium pan with a lid to heat on medium high. Add the pepper, garlic and herbs and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the stock and passata. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer about 10 minutes (or until reduced by about 1/4).

While the soup reduces, whisk together the sesame seed butter, vinegar, soy milk and sea salt until thick. Set aside while the soup finishes. It will continue to thicken and the taste will soften.

When the soup is ready, remove from heat. Add about half of parsley to the soup and stir to combine. Let stand 2 minutes to cool. Season to taste. Ladle out. Season the garnish to taste. Drip the garnish gently onto the soup and then style how you like. Sprinkle with remaining
parsley and serve.