Moving, it makes a girl tired and cranky. The cold rainy weather hasn’t helped any either. After what seems like weeks of packing, cleaning and toting boxes around, I really needed a break. My kitchen stuff had been unpacked and put away in some semblance of organization. The new place was starting to feel like home, so I felt that some home cooking was in order. Mind you it was the middle of the week and I wasn’t really up to anything too ambitious, but I was in dire need of comfort food. I had lunch at Madison's Grill last month and my thoughts went straight back to their Sylvan Star Grilled Cheese Sandwich. I’d been to the 104th Street Market on Saturday and just happened to have some Sylvan Star Spiced Gouda in the fridge. At Madison’s they use Gouda and Gruyere but I’d just have to suffer and use only the Gouda. As soon as I’d decided on the grilled cheese sandwich my next thought was of course tomato soup. Thankfully, I had all the necessary ingredients in my cupboard. The soup is a bit of a work in progress. I’ve been pulling bits from a bunch of recipes trying to work towards something that I’ll consider perfect. This version was adjusted a bit due to a limited pantry, but it worked out pretty well.
Creamy Tomato Soup
3 tablespoons butter
½ cup onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (5.5 oz) tomato paste
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
½ tsp red pepper flakes
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
¼ cup fresh basil, finely chopped
pinch of sugar
salt and pepper
1 cup cream
1. Melt the butter in a large pot. Add the onion, carrot and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes
2. Add the tomato paste and 1 cup of stock and mix well
3. Add the thyme, bay leaf and red pepper flakes, cook for 2 minutes stirring often
4. Add the tomatoes and rest of stock (you may want to adjust the stock added depending on how thick you want your soup.)
5. Bring your soup to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes
6. Add sugar, basil and salt & pepper to taste
7. Puree the soup in a blender (you can freeze the soup at this point.) When ready to serve, add the cream and warm
Definitely a success. The sandwich was perfect served with some of The Jam Lady's Rhubarb Chutney (also picked up at the market on Saturday) and my tomato soup. My crankiness was alleviated by a belly full of a couple of updated childhood favourites and I spent the rest of the evening curled up on the couch, reading a book and listening to the rain come down. Beats Campbell’s soup and Kraft Singles any day.
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