grilled cheese and tomato soup
The weather report for today was fraught with words like “icy,” “sleet,” and “freezing rain.” Meaning the weather really sucks. On the bright side, this is exactly the kind of day for a homemade version of that canned kiddie favorite, tomato soup. With a plain grilled cheddar sandwich, of course. It’s a winter version of a favorite summer combination: bread, tomatoes, and cheese.
At its simplest, all it takes to make tomato soup is canned (home-canned or otherwise) tomatoes, a little bit of chopped onion, water or broth, and salt and pepper. If you want to get un-basic, you can take it in all kinds of directions: fresh herbs, other vegetables (celery, peppers, carrots, garlic), spices like curry powder or cayenne pepper or cumin, creme fraiche stirred in at the end. I also found that a pinch of sugar is exactly what tomato soup needs to round out all that acidity. To make it: soften the onions (and other vegetables, if using) in a little bit of oil or butter, then add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a simmer. Give it all a quick whirl (carefully and messily) in a blender or food processor (or with an immersion blender), then return it to the pot to heat it through.
