Tomato-fennel soup w/garlic croutons and parmesan cheese

1. Recipe by: annie somerville in "fields of greens" preparation time: 0:15 note: if you are not making your own stock from scratch, increase the anise seed and fennel seed to be ground by ½ teaspoon each, and add 2 cups of chopped tomatoes when you add your stock made from veggie broth powder or other means.
2. Make the stock and keep it warm over low heat.
3. In a non-stick soup pot, water-saute the onions with ¾ teaspoon salt, the anise, and the ground fennel.
4. When the onions are soft, add the garlic, carrots, and sliced fennel.
5. Cover the pan and cook the vegetables until they are very tender, about 5 minutes.
6. Remove the lid, add the sherry, and cook for 1 or 2 minutes, until the pan is nearly dry. Add the chopped tomatoes (if not already in the stock), tomato puree, 1 quart stock, and ¼ teaspoon salt; cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes.
7. Seasoni to taste with salt and pepper.
8. Add a few pinches of sugar if the soup tastes too acidic.
9. Serve with garlic croutons and freshly grated parmesan cheese.
10. Garlici croutons: preheat the oven to 375°F.
11. Lay the slices of baguette on a baking sheet, spray them lightly with cooking spray (optional), and sprinkle the garlic on them generously, adding more to taste.
12. I found that pre-chopped garlic from a jar has enough oil in it that it is perfect to spread on and still use the absolute minimum oil to achieve the desired result.
13. Bakei for about 8 minutes, until the croutons are crisp and lightly browned.
14. Serving suggestion: place one crouton in the bottom of a shallow soup bowl, fill the bowl with soup, and top with 2 or 3 croutons, garlic-side up. Ððððð notes: (adapted by curtis jackson) a delicious soup for early fall, made with late harvest tomatoes and the first fennel of the season.
15. The acidity of the tomatoes will retard the cooking of the vegetables, so be sure they"re very tender before adding them.
16. Include the fennel trimmings in the stock; they"ll enrich the flavor.
17. Curtis sez: "not only is this soup absolutely delicious, but it is a one-pot meal that can be on the table in about an hour from start to finish.
18. Be careful with the size range of fennel bulbs - on my first go at this recipe my 2 fennel bulbs yielded about 4 cups instead of 2 and i had to freeze a half.
19. Also, you might try adding a lot of black pepper (about a tablespoon) to make a nicely peppery version of this soup.
20. " makes 8 cups per serving (excluding unknown items): 257 calories; 5g fat (18% calories from fat); 8g protein; 40g carbohydrate; 2mg cholesterol; 2264mg sodium.