YUM - Creamy Tomato Orzo Soup

Tonight's' attempt at cooking a fresh and yummy concoction went awesomely...AGAIN.  I'm in love! 

The recipe - Creamy Tomato soup with Meatballs and Orzo - was taken from the below blog post, so anybody wanting to make samesies, follow along:

http://themoserfive.wordpress.com/2008/12/19/creamy-tomato-soup-with-meatballs-orzo/

A few alterations I did were:

- whole wheat, organic orzo

- a small forkful of whipped butter instead of a stick

- no Parmesan cheese topping

- instead of 2 cans of diced tomatoes, I did 1 box of Pomi chopped tomatoes (the serving size was smaller, but it worked out)

- AND instead of meatballs...I used Quorn meat-less balls (yes!)

Although I am trying to eliminate cans from my food-life (Eek, BPA!), I did have to use one for this recipe (thanks, Whole Foods).  But if you can find a box/jar of tomato sauce instead of a can, I'm jealous and wish I could have done the same.  Nonetheless,  tonight's cooking experience ended up being wonderful and I highly recommend this to any soup lovers out there.  It's filling, healthy, and AMAZING!

Here's what you need:

Tomato Basil soup
2 cans petite diced tomatoes
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic minced
Basil
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup (raw) orzo  cooked according to package directions
1 cup half and half (I use fat-free half & half)
1 stick unsalted butter (you can get away with much less)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese for garnish

 First up: chopped tomatoes, tomato sauce, fresh garlic and chicken stock.

Next up: fat free half and half, organic basil, whole wheat orzo and MEATLESS QUORN BALLS!!!!

And after some quality time (15 minutes and then taste) on the stove it was finito!

TO DO:

Over med. heat put tomato products, stock, and garlic in a large stock pot. 
Let this come to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. 
Add basil, butter and half and half and whisk until well blended.
Add meat balls (cook according to Quorn instructions on the bag) and orzo before serving with Parmesan cheese (or not).

Total time: 45 minutes.
xoxo
L