Cream of Sun-dried Tomato Soup

Ingredients

 * 1 quart milk, whole, low-fat or skim
 * 1 small onion, peeled and stuck with
 * 2 cloves
 * 6 whole peppercorns (or more)
 * 1 pinch salt
 * 4 tbsp rice flour (or barley or oat flour)
 * 4 tbsp cold milk (about)
 * 1 pack sun-dried tomatoes (3 oz)
 * 2 cup water

Bouquet garni

 * 6 fresh parsley stems
 * ½ tsp dried leaf thyme
 * ½ bay leaf

Optional

 * 6 tbsp heavy cream
 * chopped herbs for garnish (basil, chervil or parsley)

Bouquet garni

 * 1) Tie the herbs in a cheesecloth.

Soup

 * 1) This creamy, vibrant red soup has but 100 calories per serving if you use low-fat milk and no cream.
 * 2) Place the milk, onion, peppercorns, salt and bouquet garni in a saucepan and bring slowly to a boil.
 * 3) Form a smooth paste of the rice flour and the cold milk.
 * 4) Put into the just-boiling milk and stir briskly until there are no lumps.
 * 5) Simmer over very low heat for 20 minutes.
 * 6) Meanwhile, boil the sun-dried tomatoes in the 2 cups of water; do not drain.
 * 7) Strain the milk mixture, add the tomatoes and their liquid, and simmer another 5 minutes.
 * 8) In a blender, in batches, liquefy the soup.
 * 9) Return to the stove and bring just to a boil.
 * 10) Add the optional cream, if desired, and serve in hot bowls garnished with a minced green herb.