Snowed In with Homemade Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese
On a cold night, nothing sounds better than homemade Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese. That's exactly what we were in the mood for the other night and luckily I had everything on hand to make it happen.
This Tomato Basil Soup is warm and delicious. A hint of Dry Sherry and heavy cream added at the end makes it rich and hearty.
I love serving it in mugs with grilled cheese cut into long strips—perfect for dipping. Hope you and your family are staying warm this week and making lots of soup for family and neighbors!
Tomato Basil Soup 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter 1 medium onion, thinly sliced 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1/4 cup tomato paste 2 34-oz. cans whole tomatoes 1 Tablespoon sugar 6 cups chicken stock (preferably homemade, recipe here) 1/2 cup (or more) heavy cream Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 1/2 cup sherry 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Melt butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is completely soft and translucent, 10–12 minutes (being careful not to let the garlic burn). Increase heat to medium-high; add tomato paste. Continue cooking, stirring often, until paste has begun to caramelize in spots, 5–6 minutes.
Add tomatoes with juices, sugar, and chicken stock to pot. Increase heat to high; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer until flavors meld and soup reduces to about 3 quarts, 45–55 minutes. Remove soup from heat; let cool slightly. Working in small batches, purée soup in a blender until smooth (or leave in pot and use an immersion blender). Return to pot.
Stir in cream, sherry and basil. Simmer soup until flavors meld, 15-20 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add more cream, if desired.
