I made this soup on Sunday night. It just got better as the week went on. It was easy to make and cheap: a great meal for a snowy night.

 Ingredients

2 large cans of diced tomatoes (generic brand: $1.99 a can)
3 stalks of celery, diced ($0.37)
2 large carrots, diced ($0.40)
2 onions, chopped ($0.60)
garlic*, minced (I use pre-chopped garlic from the jar $7.50 for 600mL)
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
vegetable broth (optional)

Directions

Heat oven to 450F. drain the tomato juice into a bowl (will use later) and spread the tomatoes on a cookie sheet. Put in oven for about 25 mins.

Meanwhile,  put 2tbps of olive oil in a soup pan over low-medium heat. Add the celery, onions, carrots and garlic. Sweat (cook over low-ish heat. The veggies should sizzle slightly) until the tomatoes are done. Add tomatoes to the soup pan and add remaining tomato juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then let it simmer for 10-15 mins.

You can use a blender or hand-blender to puree the soup or eat it rough. You can add vegetable broth or water to thin out the soup.

Eat with toasted bread and butter. You can spoon some plain yoghurt or sour cream on top if you like it creamy.

Another addition is to add some chopped red pepper to the tomatoes before they go in the oven.

*put in as much garlic as you like.