Creamy Fresh Tomato Soup

This year I decided to try my hand at growing a few things. I started with tomatoes because, well they are very basic, you water them, they grow. I figured I could do that! I also have always wanted to grow my own herbs. They are so expensive at the store and never stay fresh long once they have been picked so I also planted some basil, chives and parsley. The parsley totally bombed, it got about an inch high and stayed that way all summer long. The chives are doing well, I toss them in little things here and there. But what I am really excited about is the basil I grew. I love basil, in just about everything. I actually wish Scentsy would make a basil scented wax, I would use it everyday! Anyhow, I got all my plants going and then all of a sudden I had tomatoes everywhere. Every bowl in my kitchen was spilling over and I was eating them as quickly as I could. I had to come up with a way to use these tomatoes! So here it is: Creamy Fresh Tomato Soup. I made a huge batch and froze it in 1 pint mason jars (the perfect serving for the hubby and I). In the future I think I may just use freezer bags, but the mason jars stack nicely in the freezer and I just pull one out in the morning, put it in the fridge and by dinner I have soup ready to heat up. It is truly delicious and so satisfying. Enjoy!
Creamy Fresh Tomato Soup

Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped red onions (about 2 onions)
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
8 cups vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped (about 8 large)
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves, plus extra for garnish, if desired
4 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 3/4 cup half and half OR 1 cup heavy cream
Croutons, crusty bread, (or a grilled cheese sandwich) for garnish

Directions
Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions and carrots and saute for about 10 minutes, until very tender but not brown. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, sugar, tomato paste, basil, chicken stock, salt, and pepper and stir well. Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes, until the tomatoes are very tender.
Add the cream to the soup. Process it through a food mill into a bowl, or in a blender or food processor in batches. If you use a food mill, discarding only the dry pulp that's left. Reheat the soup over low heat just until hot and serve with julienned basil leaves and/or croutons. Keeps in the freezer for up to 6 months, maybe longer, but you will probably eat it all too fast to ever know! Enjoy!!!!