Summer Squash Vegetable Soup

This is one of our FAVORITE soups – originally sent to me by Cindy and called “Jo’s Baked Garlic Soup” however, I think the name I chose is more descriptively accurate. We love it because it tastes great; even Kevin, who hates vegetable soup, loves it. I also love it because it uses a LOT of garden vegetables, for those of us who have trouble with too many, too fast at harvest time. Plus, it is really easy to substitute almost any of the ingredients and liberally interpret the amounts and it is still delicious. I often make quite a few servings of this soup and freeze the servings, then, during the winter pull out of the freezer, reheat (in the oven) and finish off the soup.

Below are the original notes from the recipe:
This recipe is from The Garlic Lovers’ Cookbook. A lady named Jo Stallard
won first place at the Gilroy Garlic Festival back in 1980 with this recipe. I
am listing the recipe as it appears in the cookbook. I have seen this recipe
around the ‘net, however, one key ingredient is being left out: Paprika. I
think it makes a big difference in the flavor. I make it exactly as written,
with the following substitutions: I use a can of Northern beans instead of
garbanzo, I use red bell pepper instead of green, and I use fat free half
and half instead of whipping cream. It is the most delicious soup I have ever
tasted! I make it at least once a week. Great way to get your family to eat
their veggies!

Ingredients

2 cups diced fresh tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, undrained
4 -5 summer squash, sliced
2 large onions, sliced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1 1⁄ 2 cups dry white wine
4 -5 fresh garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon basil
1⁄ 2 teaspoon paprika
1 1⁄4 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
1 cup shredded romano cheese
1 1⁄ 4 cups heavy cream or 1 1/4 cups whipping cream

Method

Butter the inside of a 3 quart baking dish.
Combine all ingredients, except cheeses and cream in dish.
At this point, it will look like a huge veggie casserole.
Cover and bake for 1 hour at 375 degrees.
Add cheeses and cream and stir.
Lower oven temperature to 325 degrees.
Return to oven and bake 10 to 15 minutes longer, until cheese is melted.
Do not allow to Boil.
I usually serve this with garlic bread.
If you plan to freeze this, do not add the cheese and cream. Save that step after you
have reheated the frozen soup