Roasted - Tomato Basil Soup and Parmesan Croutons

This is my first post and I'm so excited to be doing this with you ladies. I'm getting a late start in the game and to be quite honest I'm a little intimidated by all the great stuff the rest of you ladies have already made, and the fabulous pictures you have posted.

For my first recipe from the book, I chose Roasted-Tomato Basil Soup and then later decided to make the Parmesan Croutons too. I only made half a recipe (my husband is out of town) but I think next time I will make more and see if I can freeze some.

I was happy with how it came out. Except I think I over salted the tomatoes when I roasted them, so the salty taste of the soup was a little overwhelming. I used Sea Salt, and I think it has a stronger flavor. I tried to add a little lemon juice to off set the salt, but it didn't help much. So, next time I know, less salt.

I do think roasting the tomatoes adds to the flavor. I don't have a food mill, so I used my food processor instead, it seemed to do the job just fine.

As for the croutons, I used the bread that I already had, but I was thrilled with how they came out. I'm sure with baguette they would be even better. But, I plan on making these again to just have on hand.

I thought the soup was just calling out for Parmesan Cheese, so I put some on top. I realized after I took the picture that you see more Parmesan than you do soup, oops.

Looking forward to more cooking!