Mom's Jersey Fresh Tomato Soup

2 lg Onions, finely sliced

4 ea Bacon strips, cooked

Crisp and crumbled 1 1/2 tb Butter

6 ea Red ripe Jersey Tomatoes,

Peeled, cored and chopped 2 tb Tomato paste

3 ea Lemon rind strips

4 c Chicken stock

1 t Sugar

1/2 ts Thyme (dried)

1 t Basil (dried)

Salt and pepper to taste Croutons for garnish Fresh basil sprigs For garnish

Saute onions in butter about 5 minutes until tender and golden. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, lemon rind, chicken stock, bacon and herbs. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer until tomatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove lemon rind. Cool soup, then puree in blender. Strain puree. Reheat before serving. Garnish with croutons and basil sprigs. Source: Jane Camarota. This recipe won in the soup catagory of the "Jersey Fresh Cookoff".