Roasted Tomato Soup with Grilled-Cheese Croutons

 When I was a kid, one of my favorite meals was tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich on the side. So, why not combine them in a single bite? The tomato soup does take a little bit of time because you have to roast the fresh tomatoes and boil the soup for 40 minutes, but if you plan ahead and roast the tomatoes ahead of time, and chop up your onion and garlic, you can easily have a meal in under 45 minutes. This soup packed a ton of fresh, wholesome flavor, and tasted so much better than your sodium-preservative heavy canned soup version. Here's to preserving childhood favorites!

*this recipe came from a Family Fun magazine called Dinnertime . You can check out the original recipe from Family Fun website.

Roasted Tomato Soup Recipe

Serves: 5 Prep: 10 minutes Cooking Time:  1 hour and 20 minutes


3 cups (1 1/2-2 pints) of cherry tomatoes
1 1/2 TB olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 TB butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup onion, chopped 
1 (14oz) can diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp thyme
1/2 whipping cream (I used half and half, would work with milk as well)

1. Heat oven to 400*F. On a baking sheet, combine cherry tomatoes, 1 TB olive oil, salt and pepper. Coat ingredients evenly. Roast until they are shriveled, about 35-40 minutes.
2. In a large pot, heat over medium heat, butter and remaining 1/2 TB olive oil. Add garlic and onion, and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add canned tomatoes with their juice, broth, thyme and roasted tomatoes (include whatever juice comes off of the tomatoes). Bring to a boil, and simmer partially covered for 40 minutes.

 3.Using a blender or hand mixer, puree the soup until it's smooth. Return to pot and add the cream. Warm it up over medium heat, without letting it boil, until it is warm enough. Serve with grilled-cheese croutons.

Grilled Cheese Croutons Recipe

butter (optional)
6 slices of whole wheat bread
3 oz cheddar cheese, grated or thinly sliced (I like the extra-charp version)

1. Butter the outside of the bread. Place in a skillet of medium-high heat, buttered side down. Place cheese on top. Stack second piece of bread on top. Cook, turning once, about 3-5 minutes.  Cut into squares, and serve with Tomato soup.

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Plan and Prep Ahead 

Here are some helpful techniques to make life a little easier once dinner time hits. These tips will especially help those that work full-time and don't have a lot of time to prepare dinner. 

~Roast tomatoes ahead of time and keep in fridge until time to use. 
~Chop onion and garlic ahead of time and keep in fridge until time to use. 
~Grate or thinly slice cheese and keep in fridge until time to use. 
~Make the whole soup ahead of time, and just reheat when it's dinner time. 


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Who likes to CHANGE IT UP? 

~Instead of thyme try oregano or basil.

~Instead of cheddar cheese try monterrey jack or mozarella. 

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