Tomato soup

I love soups.
That's a statement.
I can live on soups.
Another statement.
But for some strange reason, I have never tried to feed my family soups as a meal. But now that I have got a little more adventurous with baking bread, I decided to give it a try. Saw this beautiful recipe of Padma Anagol's and made it to celebrate the first day of the holidays. Kids loved it, as did the hubby, and I am definitely doing more soup and bread meals.

5-6 tomatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, grated
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsps olive oil
2 tsps tomato puree
1 tsp sugar
2 bay leaves
White pepper
Salt to taste
Water as required

Method:-
Spoon 2 tbsps olive oil into a large pan and heat it over a low heat. 
 Add the onions and sauté for a few minutes. 
Add the garlic and give it a quick stir and then add the carrot. 
Sauté for another few minutes and then add the tomato puree and stir around. 
Add the tomatoes, sugar and grind in a little white pepper. 
Tear 2 bay leaves and throw them into the pan. 
Stir to mix everything together, and let the tomatoes stew over a low heat for 10 minutes. 
Now slowly pour in the water so as to submerge the tomatoes completely. Turn up the heat and boil for about 20 minutes. 
Remove the pan from the heat and fish out the pieces of bay leaves and throw them away. Let cool briefly and then puree until smooth. 
Put the pan back on the stove, add salt and reheat the soup. 
Taste and adjust the pepper and sugar if required. Garnish with some cream and basil, if using.