Rich and Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

I've never been a big fan of canned tomato soup or any tomato soup for that matter. I decided to go out on a limb and try a recipe I found on allrecipes.com that was highly rated. I'm glad I did because this was pretty good. My sister, who actually likes tomato soups, said it was excellent. It seems like a lot of work to me, but then again, I'm a convenience junkie and love pouring a can of soup into the microwave and having it done in a few minutes.Overall, it was a success.

Rich and Creamy Tomato Basil Soup
Ingredients:
4 tomatoes - peeled, seeded and diced (I used one can of whole tomatoes)
4 cups tomato juice
14 leaves fresh basil
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup butter
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1.Place tomatoes and juice in a stock pot over medium heat. Simmer for 30 minutes. Puree the tomato mixture along with the basil leaves, and return the puree to the stock pot.
2.Place the pot over medium heat, and stir in the heavy cream and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Heat, stirring until the butter is melted. Do not boil.

Here are the results: