... and grilled cheese!
Today I wanted some good, old comfort. There's almost nothing that can say that to me more than a creamy tomato soup and grilled cheese.
To make the soup:
In a large pot over medium heat, add a couple tablespoons of olive oil and a couple tablespoons of butter. While those are melting down and together, chop one onion. It doesn't have to be diced too small, just a coarse chop. Once the butter and oil are melted, add the onion and continue to cook it over medium heat until the onion gets nice and soft. Don't forget to add a little salt and pepper - you know how I feel! =]~
While that's cooking, take about 60 ounces of whole tomatoes (if you can your own, you'd use about a quart), add it to a blender and pulse it a few times to break the tomatoes down. You will likely have to do this in two batches. Check your onions! Keep stirring them as we don't want them to brown or char, we just want them soft.
Once the onions are done, add in the tomatoes and about 4 cups of chicken stock. Add kosher salt and fresh black pepper and 2 bay leaves. Let all that come together, on low heat, for about 20 minutes.
Slowly add heavy cream to the soup until you've added about 1 1/2 - 2 cups. It's really a preference thing. I like my soup nice and creamy. Now, in our house, we sometimes need to make things stretch - feed the masses, yanno what I mean? So, to do that, I used a separate pot, boiled some elbow noodles and tossed them in the soup. It made the soup a little more substantial and even the pickier eaters enjoyed it because it had a little fun in it!
Then, for the sammiches... I used ciabatta bread that was fresh at the deli counter and American cheese and cheddar cheese sliced fresh from the deli counter. These are two important things. Too often we get caught in simple, old school grilled cheese. It's really easy to give it a fresh taste!
So, I cut the tops off the bread rolls like this...
In a small bowl, I added about 1/4 cup of mayo - not miracle whip - and some garlic powder, to taste. On one piece of the bread, I smeared a good bit of the garlic mayo. Then I added one slice of American and one slice of cheddar. Don't over cheese a grilled cheese. It's about using good, quality cheese and just enough to make it yummy. Close the sandwich up. I made 10 sandwiches, but had to go back and make some more mayo along the way. I buttered one side of all the sandwiches while they were sitting on the counter and the pan was heating up. You want to make grilled cheese over medium heat. This will give the cheese time to melt without burning the outside. Whatever you do... butter the bread and not the pan! As I got ready to add them to the pan, I held it carefully and buttered the other side.
Cook until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden.
Now go eat! =]
Today I wanted some good, old comfort. There's almost nothing that can say that to me more than a creamy tomato soup and grilled cheese.
To make the soup:
In a large pot over medium heat, add a couple tablespoons of olive oil and a couple tablespoons of butter. While those are melting down and together, chop one onion. It doesn't have to be diced too small, just a coarse chop. Once the butter and oil are melted, add the onion and continue to cook it over medium heat until the onion gets nice and soft. Don't forget to add a little salt and pepper - you know how I feel! =]~
While that's cooking, take about 60 ounces of whole tomatoes (if you can your own, you'd use about a quart), add it to a blender and pulse it a few times to break the tomatoes down. You will likely have to do this in two batches. Check your onions! Keep stirring them as we don't want them to brown or char, we just want them soft.
Once the onions are done, add in the tomatoes and about 4 cups of chicken stock. Add kosher salt and fresh black pepper and 2 bay leaves. Let all that come together, on low heat, for about 20 minutes.
Then, for the sammiches... I used ciabatta bread that was fresh at the deli counter and American cheese and cheddar cheese sliced fresh from the deli counter. These are two important things. Too often we get caught in simple, old school grilled cheese. It's really easy to give it a fresh taste!
So, I cut the tops off the bread rolls like this...
In a small bowl, I added about 1/4 cup of mayo - not miracle whip - and some garlic powder, to taste. On one piece of the bread, I smeared a good bit of the garlic mayo. Then I added one slice of American and one slice of cheddar. Don't over cheese a grilled cheese. It's about using good, quality cheese and just enough to make it yummy. Close the sandwich up. I made 10 sandwiches, but had to go back and make some more mayo along the way. I buttered one side of all the sandwiches while they were sitting on the counter and the pan was heating up. You want to make grilled cheese over medium heat. This will give the cheese time to melt without burning the outside. Whatever you do... butter the bread and not the pan! As I got ready to add them to the pan, I held it carefully and buttered the other side.
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| Yes, this was a child's bowl. At least I grabbed a photo, right? |
Cook until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden.
Now go eat! =]
MMMM, I never thought of making my own tomato soup, good idea my sweet, smart, creative daughter!
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