bella's tomato soup

bella, my mother in law, is one of the greatest home cooks out there. i
mean it! not only the fact that she makes enough food to feed at least 20
hungry people every friday night, but every dish is also made to
perfection. bella was my inspiration to start cooking, and my first dishes
came from her recipes.
it is hard to get a specific recipe from bella. she refers to her cooking
as art and the quantities are "up to you," the cook, and only love,
dedication and creativity will bring you to the right results. i have
decided to start posting some of her recipes here. lucky for you, i have
already tried them a few times and have estimated the quantities, although
i agree with bella, every time i make a dish i always make it a bit
different from the last time. do not be afraid to experiment and change
the recipe. have fun with it!
tomato soup is the first recipe im going to post, because it is still
fresh in my mind. i love tomatoes, and had the pleasure of eating it few
weeks ago when i was in israel. coming back to the cold weather of new york made me want to experience it all over again. at first you will need to peal the tomatoes. it is very easy, and all you need is to add them to a pot full of boiling water. after approximately 2 minutes the tomatoes will start pealing by themselves. this is a good time to take them out, wait for few minutes till they cool down, and easily peal and chop them.
first time i made it the soup came out too thick but by adding water i managed to get it to the right consistency.
there are various versions for tomato soups and i have decided to add rice and
serve it with toasted bread. the rice was added right when the soup was ready, and all i did was to continued simmering it till the rice was ready.
you can also serve your tomato soup with some basil and a sprinkle of olive oil.

INGREDIENTS
6 large fresh tomatoes
1tbs olive oil
1 large onion chopped
2 chopped garlic cloves
6-7 cups of water
12oz can of tomato paste
2 tsp sugar
salt and pepper
2 tbs heavy cream or coconut milk. (i used regular milk.)
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PREPARATION
peel tomatoes by placing them in boiling water for 2 min. take out of the water and peel than chop.
in large saucepan heat oil and add onions. cook for few minutes till translucent.
add garlic ad cook for 1 more minute.
add chopped tomatoes and cook till they are little soft.
add water, salt and pepper, sugar, and tomato paste. bring to boil and than simmer for 20 minutes or till tomatoes soften.
turn of the heat. working in batches, blend soup in blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids).
add heavy cream/milk or coconut milk and stir well.
reheat and simmer for another 10 minutes.