Half of this rich and creamy soup is pureed, leaving some delicious chunks of tomato.

Ingredients

Serves 6.

* 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* Coarse salt and ground pepper
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 3 tablespoons tomato paste
* 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
* 2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth
* 2 cans (28 ounces each) whole peeled tomatoes in juice (with basil if available)

Directions

1. In a 5-quart saucepan or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat; add oil and onion, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour and tomato paste; cook 1 minute.
2. To saucepan, add thyme, broth, and tomatoes, breaking up tomatoes with your fingers. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, 30 minutes. (Remove thyme sprigs before blending.)
3. Using an immersion blender, puree soup in pot, leaving a fair amount of the tomatoes in chunks. Or, working in several batches, puree half (5 cups) of the soup in a conventional blender until smooth; return to pot. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or let cool to room temperature before dividing among airtight containers (leaving 1 inch of space at the top) and freezing.