| 1 | Core the tomatoes and chop them coarsely. |
| 2 | Chop the onions, peppers, celery, and parsley coarsely, and divide equally, along with the tomatoes, between 2 very large, deep kettles. |
| 3 | Divide the salt between the 2 kettles, too. |
| 4 | Cover, bring to a boil, and simmer over medium-low heat for 1 hour, or until all vegetables are very tender. |
| 5 | Stir frequently. |
| 6 | Put mixture through a sieve or food mill. |
| 7 | Transfer the puree to a large kettle. |
| 8 | In a medium bowl, combine all remaining ingredients except butter. |
| 9 | Add the seasonings gradually to the hot puree, beating in with a whisk. |
| 10 | Add the butter and whisk smooth. |
| 11 | Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium low heat for 3 minutes. |
| 12 | Pour hot into 12 hot pint jars, leaving ?inch head space. |
| 13 | Seal and process in hot- water bath for 15 min. to serve, add one 11 ounce can cream of mushroom soup and 1 soup can of water to every pint of tomato soup base. |
| 14 | Heat and serve yield: 6 to 8 servings. |
| 15 | Note: you can also prepare the soup base by adding 1 ?cups milk to it, or even using 1 ?cups water |
