Roasted tomato basil soup

Slow cooker for eight hours on low

Lay tomatoes (2 28oz cans worth, liquid reserved) on a lined (with foil) baking sheet. Cover with one medium chopped onion and 2-3 Tbsp brown sugar. 

Bake at 450*F for 30 minutes. 

Cool slightly. 

Purée. (I put mine into the blender, you can chop it if you prefer)

(Make sure you use your spatula and scrape all those delicious onion morsels in too!!)

I pulsed the blender 10 times. 

Add to your slow cooker 6 cups liquid (your reserved, I had 2 1/2 cups, and vegetable broth (make sure it's gluten free), 3 Tbsp tomato paste (I ended up putting the paste in the blender and pulsing it 3 more times), and a few dashes of apple pie spice (or allspice). 

Pour the tomato mixture into your slow cooker (careful, it might splash!) and stir well. 

Cook on low for 8 hours to let the flavors mingle. 

Stir.

 Add basil, about 10 large leaves, cut chiffonade (or shred, but the basil will bruise and darken quicker). 

Add 5 oz evaporated milk. 

Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

We enjoy with homemade gluten free bread. 

I thought the soup was delicious as is but my daughter and husband were not so happy with the less than smooth texture. I poured the whole lot into my blender and put it on high speed for a few minutes until the basil was tiny tiny. They were much happier (and I was happy they were getting their servings of fiber).