Tomato basil soup

Makes 3 quarts

Adapted from here

2 15.5-oz cans fire roasted diced tomatoes, with juice
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. chopped carrots
1 c. chopped onion
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 Tbsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. red pepper flake
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
3.5-4 c. chicken broth
1 bay leaf

Put all of the above ingredients in a 3 quart (ideally 4 quart) slow cooker and cook on LOW for 5-7 hours until the vegetables are tender. About 30 minutes before serving, prepare a roux: 2 Tbsp. butter 3 Tbsp. flour 2 c. half and half Cook the butter and flour for 5-7 minutes. Whisk in the half and half, and cook over medium until the mixture thickens. Whisk 3 cups of hot soup into the cream mixture, in batches. Return the soup to the slow cooker. Add additional basil and oregano, if needed. I added extra salt and pepper here, too. Cook for another 20-30 minutes and do a final check on seasonings.

The original recipe called for a cup of parmesan cheese. While the soup was delicious without the parmesan, next time I'll use it. Also, I got 3 quarts of soup, whereas the recipe yielded 2 quarts.