Yesterday I was completely obsessed with the idea of eating tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. I’m not really sure why. I’ve never really been much of a sandwich person. Perhaps it was because it was a grey, rainy day. Because of the rain, I had no desire to run to the store. I don’t normally eat canned soup or cheese, so we were out of luck. It would have been really easy to pick up some condensed soup and Velveeta cheese on the way home today. Instead, I decided to go the homemade route. The extra effort was totally worth it.
Spiced Tomato Soup
2 lbs ripe tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, coarsely chopped
1 small leek, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small fresh red chile, seeded and finely chopped
1 carrot, sliced
1 potato, diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 2/3 cups water
1 tablespoon pureed sun-dried tomato
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
Dash of Tabasco
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Plunge the tomatoes into boiling water, leave for 1 minute, drain, then peel. Coarsely chop the tomatoes.
Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over low heat. Add the onion and leek and saute until softened, 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic, chile, carrot, potato, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.
Stir in the tomatoes, sugar, and wine. Increase the heat and stir for 2 minutes. Add enough water to just cover the vegetables and bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered for 10-15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.
Puree in a food processor and return to the pot. Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, cumin, Tabasco, thyme and lemon juice. Serves 6. 165 calories.
Grilled Cheese
Lightly butter outsides of 2 slices of bread. Layer pepper jack and Monterey jack cheeses on bread. Top with thinly sliced Roma tomato and second slice of bread. Grill on the Foreman for 5 minutes at 350 degrees.
