Tomato Soup

Tomato Soup

Do grilled cheese and tomato soup qualify as one of your go-to comfort meals?  So perfect in its simplicity, for me, the combination evokes memories of lazy winter weekends, warm hugs and tummy satisfaction.

I had a hankering for grilled cheese and tomato soup this week.  Not just any old grilled cheese and tomato soup, mind you, but a delicious homemade tomato soup paired with a crusty, crunchy, cheesy sandwich.

My tomato soup recipe is quick and easy.  I use a large can of crushed tomatoes so it doesn't need to be tomato season to make this soup.  I also use homemade chicken stock, but you can use any chicken stock, or vegetable stock, you have on hand.  I really like having complete control over the amount of salt (and other additives) in my stock so I try to use homemade as much as possible.  I know, it's the control freak in me!  Well, let's see how this is done.

Donna's Tomato Soup

Tomato Soup Ingredients

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 slice bacon, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
• 3 sprigs parsley
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 ¾ tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 Tablespoon sugar, optional
• 1 cup heavy cream, optional

Heat a large soup pot over medium-high heat.  Add the bacon and cook until crisp and most of the fat has rendered.  Remove the bacon.  You can save the bacon bits to use on a salad.  Add the butter and olive oil to the pan.  Lower the heat to medium and add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, about 8 minutes.

Cook the Onions, Carrots, and Celery Until Soft

Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes.  Pour in the broth and tomatoes.  Bring to a boil while whisking constantly.  Tie the parsley, thyme, and bay leaf together with a piece of kitchen twine and add to the pot.  You'll notice in the picture that I only had parsley sprigs tied together.  I didn't have any fresh thyme, so I used dried thyme leaves that I simmered in a tea infuser dropped into the soup.  The bay leaf was just dropped into the soup as well because it is easy to fish out later. 

Add Fresh Herbs

Add salt and pepper.  Lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool.  Remove the herb bundle from the soup.  Now it's time to get out your trusty boat motor (immersion blender).  Using your immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth.   Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly.  If the soup tastes a bit too acidic add one tablespoon of sugar.

More times than not the soup is ready to go at this point.  I usually don't add cream to my soup because I find it creamy enough after it has been pureed.  If you want additional creaminess now is the time to add one cup of cream. This soup has 128 calories per serving without the cream and 265 calories per serving with the added cream.

Return the soup to the stove to reheat, taste and serve with your favorite grilled cheese sandwich.

Here is the printable tomato soup recipe .


Enjoy!

Donna

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