There’s a little soup place in Lincoln, Nebraska called The Grateful Bread.  Actually I think they may have changed their official named to Freakbeat Vegetarian to avoid confusion – they aren’t really a bakery – but it’s still referred  to as The Grateful Bread by people who know it.

On cool days The Grateful Bread regularly has people lining up around the block for soup, like the Soup Nazi episode of Seinfeld. That’s pretty impressive, because Lincoln isn’t that big of a town, and isn’t full of hippies.

The Grateful Bread is decorated with trolls and plastic dinosaurs. You wait in line until you can get a view of the list of 3-5 soups of the day. You make your decision and hope they don’t run out of your choice before it’s your turn to order. But alot of times they do. Alot of times there is only one kind of soup left by the time you get to the counter and you just consider yourself lucky that there’s some left for you at all.

The soups are always different except for the one soup that they have every day, which is a thick Moroccan Tomato soup. When I get homesick for Nebraska, the Grateful Bread and their Moroccan Tomato soup is one of the things I daydream about.

Their recipes are kept a secret, but today I tried my best to recreate The Grateful Bread’s Moroccan tomato recipe from a few other similar soup recipes posted online, and my memory of it’s taste. I am using the quickest ingredients and method possible. It’s not quite the same but it’s close. The peanut butter and chunky tomatoes are the key to this soup, and it’s definitely a love it or hate it kind of flavor.

• 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
• 1/3 cup ketchup (yes! ketchup! or if you’d rather not use a condiment as an ingredient, substitute 1/4 cup tomato paste and 2 tablespoons white vinegar)
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon hot sauce (tabasco, etc)
• 2 cups water
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 Tablespoon chili powder
• 1 cup creamy peanut better (preferably the natural, non-hydrogenated kind but any type will do)

It’s so fast to make!!

1. Saute the minced onion and garlic in the olive oil until the onions are translucent and limp
2. In a big stockpot add the onions and garlic to the tomatoes, peanut butter,  and water.  Simmer and stir constantly for about 10 minutes.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and adjust the seasonings to taste. Serve! (makes about 4 big bowls of soup)

UPDATE: (thanks @osmyn) I was just informed that I may be missing the secret ingredient of a bit of baking cocoa. Haven’t tried it out yet but I will soon!!