illdothedisheslater

Okay you guys – if you happen to ever be in Ohio, Kentucky, New Jersey, or Michigan, you have to find your way to a Tom and Chee restaurant (as seen on Shark Tank).   Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup are two things I can take or leave, but this place is awesome.  The soup is a salt-bomb (in a good way), and the grilled cheeses are creative, thick, and delicious.  I ordered a basic cheddar and bacon sandwich with their chunky tomato soup and wow – one week later I may still be bloated and full, but it’s SO worth it.

But I’m not a blogger who takes pictures of restaurant meals and yells and yelps about them online, so today’s project is tomato soup.  Not terribly ambitious, but the grilled cheese with homemade cheese is coming soon.

Tomato soup is actually super easy to make, as I found out today.   There are even tons of websites that tell you how to make any vegetable soup, or creamy vegetable soup with no recipe.  Well here’s my recipe, which may or may not be identical to any other one you may see:

Three large cans of whole tomatoes

One large can of tomato puree

Two large cans of water

Half a large onion, diced

Three cloves of garlic, minced

Salt

Pepper

Basil

Sugar

(The pictured cans of tomato are misleading.  I just used whole tomatoes and no juice or crushed.  I reserve the right to change my mind as I go.)

Start by sautéing the onion in a tablespoon each of olive oil and butter on medium heat.  Keep going until the onions are transclucent and tender.  Keep going even then – raw onion, as I learned with my tomato sauce, is not a flavor you want in this.  Add the garlic and sauté for another thirty seconds to one minute, stirring constantly – don’t let it burn, which will get way bitter way fast.  Add your three cans of tomatoes, juice and all.  Wait – first you were supposed to use your hands to break them up.  Rubber gloves to the rescue as I dip right into the large hot pot and squish them up.  (Not recommended unless you have hands of steel.)  You can also break them up with a spoon – careful though because they squirt.  Add the water.  Add some salt (2T), pepper (1T), and sugar (1/2C).  Let this simmer for half an hour.

A different type of person would wipe down the sides of the pot before photographing.  A different type of non-lazy person.  Cooking is messy.  It is not effortless.  You want clean and effortless, you make reservations.

The next, and almost only other step is to blend – here I use an immersion blender (don’t try this with nonstick pots!), which does the job in a jiffy, but a standard blender is just fine too if you work in small batches.

Add a little more sugar to taste.  I don’t want the cloyingly sweet Campbell’s flavor and smooth, almost creamy texture, but sugar helps cut the metallic taste of canned tomatoes.  This soup has some body, a few little chunks, and a fresh tomato flavor.  Keep simmering for as long as you like but after an hour the canned taste will be gone and it’s ready to eat.  I add the basil (1T) last to keep the flavor fresh.  Serve with grilled cheese, crackers, toast, buttered Ritz crackers – whatever you like.

The best part about this recipe is versatility – you can sweeten if that’s your game.  Add more salt.  Add cream.  Add some diced tomatoes for chunkiness.  Here are some more ideas:

A cup of sour cream and a tablespoon of dill weed (heh).

A splash of red wine for depth and some Italian seasonings.

A squeeze of lemon juice to brighten the tomato flavors.

Fresh cilantro and a generous squeeze of sriracha.

Perfect for lunch or dinner – a quick cup or a hearty bowl.