Strain the chopped canned tomatoes, reserving the juices, and spread onto a baking sheet, season with salt and pepper, to taste, drizzle with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and roast until caramelized, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat remaining olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the celery, carrot, onion and garlic, cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the roasted chopped canned tomatoes, reserved tomato juices, chicken broth, bay leaf and butter. Simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Add basil and cream, if using. Puree with a hand held immersion blender until smooth.

Combine 3 medium tomatoes, a small handful of fresh basil, and
a tsp. of minced garlic in a food processor. Consistancy should still be kind of chunky when you are done.

In a large pot, dump 2 cans of tomato soup, then refill the cans with whole milk and add to soup. Add the mixture from the food processsor, and heat on med/low until bubbling.

Tastes yummy with a little fresh romano cheese sprinkled on top!