We are gathering the last of our garden’s summer harvest. Beautiful heirloom tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers litter our countertop. When a beautiful bulb of fennel and perfectly imperfect garlic arrived in my Imperfect Produce delivery, I knew soup was in our future. This Roasted Red Pepper & Fennel Soup captures the flavors of Summer and transitions us seamlessly to Fall.

This recipe does involve turning on your oven, so if you’re still in the throes of hot and humid weather, roast those veggies ahead of time (like in those cooler mornings or late evenings). Roasting brings out the natural sweetness of the peppers and cuts the acidity of tomatoes.

Like most soups, we freeze half the batch to save for later in the season. In December we’ll defrost a few mason jars and be magically transported to this glorious season. This is a perfect nourishing soup for postpartum families with plenty of brightly colored, anti-oxidant rich veggies and healing broth. Using bone broth will up the nutrient quality of the soup, but you can use chicken or veggie broth if that’s your preference.

I use an immersion blender or stick blender to give roasted red pepper and fennel soup its smooth texture. It also cuts down on dishes from pureeing in a blender. I use my stick blender for pureeing soups, blending up boosted coffees, making homemade mayo, and pureeing fruit for gummies! If you don’t have a stick blender, you can puree this in a traditional blender or food processor, just be sure to let the steam escape as you puree or allow the soup to cool slightly. Exploding red pepper soup is messy (and potentially painful!).

Roasted Red Pepper & Fennel Soup

Liz Winters

Print Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Course Soup

Servings 6

Equipment

• Immersion Blender

Ingredients

  

• 2 red bell peppers
• 2 large heirloom tomatoes
• 1 bulb fennel fronds removed and reserved
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 sweet onion
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 2 ½ cups broth
• Salt & Pepper to Taste

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 425°
• Prep veggies: Slice peppers into 1" strips. Roughly chop tomatoes and onions. Slice fennel into 1/2" strips. Peel and smash garlic.
• Place prepped veggies on rimmed baking sheet. Toss with olive oil, vinegar and salt.
• Roast for 30 minutes.
• Add roasted veggies (and any accumulated juices) to a medium heavy-bottomed stock-pot along with broth and italian seasoning. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
• Remove soup from heat and puree with an immersion blender. Finish with salt and pepper to taste.