It’s been a while since I had fun with a food-culture mash-up and this roasted tomato soup with ricotta matzah balls is probably one of my favorites to date.

I come from a multicultural family, as you’ll see over at my blog, The Little Ferraro Kitchen. I love sharing and learning about different cultures through their food, recipes and traditions. I love it so much that I even married an Italian guy from Southern California to keep things even more exciting. So needless to say, we have an exciting multi-cultural spread of sorts.

My husband Joe and I adopted this fairly new tradition of eating Sunday supper, Italian style. We play Goodfellas in the background and I usually wince at him as I see him slice the paper-thin garlic as they do in the movie. But we create an entire dinner experience and it’s our favorite time of the week.

As the cooler season approaches, matzo ball soup is always on order. But this time, I wanted to combine our heritages and our cultures into one deliciously comforting bowl of matzo ball soup. Tomatoes, peppers and carrots are all roasted together so they get soft, caramelized and sweet. After a quick blend together, stock is added to make a truly simple tomato soup.

But the cheesy matzo balls are the BEST part. I mean honestly…cheese anything is the best part! And even though I will never turn down a simple classic, this Italian mash-up version gets me all kinds of excited. The ricotta makes the matzo balls light and pillowy and the freshly grated Parmesan gives them a wonderful savory flavor.

Roasted Tomato Soup with Ricotta Matzah Balls
Yields 2-4 servings

Tomato Soup Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. vine or roma tomatoes cut in half
• 2 red bell peppers (you can also use roasted jarred peppers)
• 2 large carrots, peeled and stems cut
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• ½ tsp. salt
• Olive oil
• 2-4 cups vegetable stock

Ricotta Matzah Ball Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 cup matzo meal
• ¼ cup ricotta cheese
• ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Fresh basil leaves, chopped
• Fresh parsley leaves, chopped
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ¼ tsp. salt
• Ground pepper

Garnish:

• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, for Parmesan chips
• Fresh basil
• Olive oil

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with foil. Add tomatoes, peppers, carrots and garlic and toss with salt and olive oil. Roast vegetables until soft and tender, for about 30 minutes. Once done, remove from oven and allow cooling enough to handle. Then remove seeds from pepper and any charred thick skin and discard.

2. Once vegetables are cool enough, add everything to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. You may want to add a bit of the stock to help thin it out, then transfer to a small pot with the rest of the stock and bring to a simmer. Taste for seasoning and adjust.

3. For the matzah balls, whisk all the ingredients together until well combined and form into medium sized balls. Add to boiling water and cook until matzah balls float to the top, about 30 minutes.

4. To make the parmesan chip, leave oven at 400° Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silpat. Place a heaping tablespoon or two of grated Parmesan cheese and lightly press down so it’s in a circle and replicate with remaining cheese. Bake for about five minutes until the cheese melts and edges are slightly crispy. Once done, remove from oven and allow to cool before removing.

5. Assemble soup by adding matzo balls to roasted tomato soup and garnish each bowl with a Parmesan chip, fresh basil and a good drizzle of olive oil. Buon appetite!