Roasted tomato soup

I got the idea from Mark Bittman and followed his recipe with some changes. I tripled the garlic, doubled the carrot, added bread (same potato and thyme bread mentioned below), reduced the liquid addition, and in the end pureed the soup. I think the changes were warranted - it turned out flavorful and thicker than his version.

1 28oz can tomatoes, drained and liquid reserved
olive oil
2 medium carrots
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
2 cups water
thyme
bread (crusty baked bread works well here)
salt/pepper
red chili pepper (optional, I used a half teaspoon)

Cut the tomatoes in half, put on baking sheet, top with olive oil and thyme, and roast at 375 till the edges start to turn black (Bittman says 30 mins, I put mine in the broiler after 30 mins to finish them off).

In saucepan, sautee garlic, onions, and carrot in olive oil for a few minutes, till roughly the onion has cooked through. Add salt, pepper, water, bread, the roasted tomatoes, any liquid that collected in the roasting pan, and the reserved tomato liquid from the can. Raise heat till soup boils, boil one minute, and reduce to a low simmer. I recommend adding more olive oil at this point, it makes for a richer soup, maybe 2 tablespoons. Simmer 20-30 minutes till veg is cooked through.

Once done, puree in blender. Add more freshly ground pepper and serve. Unfortunately this photo cannot convey flavor:

Cedar plank salmon

Seen this whole cooking with cedar thing on TV a few too many times and decided I should try it myself. Went down to Northampton Lumber and had them saw an 8' plank into one foot sections. Made sure it was untreated wood first. I was assured and reassured. If there was any arsenic et al in the wood, it sure made for good eats.

I heated the plank for 15 mins at 400 degrees. The salmon got a lemon pepper, garlic salt, and salt rub, then marinated for 30 minutes in soy sauce, dark brown sugar, red pepper, veg oil, and water. Salmon went on plank, went in oven, came out of oven, went in my stomach. Made my mouth very happy in the process. The finished product: