Reeeeally Good Comfort Food | Classic Tomato Soup

I received a phone call from my husband yesterday:

“Babe, I want something really good for dinner.”

“Okay. We have something really good for dinner every night. Sooo….? And I already have the meals planned for the week.”

“No, I mean REALLY good. You ready? I know what I want: Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese. I need some comfort food.”

So, because I am a REALLY good wife, off to the store I went. I needed a few miscellaneous things anyway. This recipe is so easy and so cheap & I figured I’d make my standard double or triple batch so I had a bunch to freeze. I originally found this recipe in Everyday Food many years ago. I have tweaked it & used different ingredients to see what makes the best batch. I have it nailed. I LOVE this tomatoey soup. Hope you do too!

Classic Tomato Soup

(found in Everyday Food Magazine here)
Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter *I use unsalted
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • Coarse salt and ground pepper
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
  • 2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth *I use low sodium Swanson broth
  • 2 cans (28 ounces each) whole peeled tomatoes in juice (with basil if available) *my favorite canned tomatoes are the Market Pantry tomatoes from Target

Directions

  • In a 5-quart saucepan or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat; add oil and onion, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour and tomato paste; cook 1 minute.
  • To saucepan, add thyme, broth, and tomatoes, breaking up tomatoes with your fingers. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, 30 minutes. (Remove thyme sprigs before blending.)
  • Using an immersion blender, puree soup in pot, leaving a fair amount of the tomatoes in chunks. Or, working in several batches, puree half (5 cups) of the soup in a conventional blender until smooth; return to pot. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or let cool to room temperature before dividing among airtight containers (leaving 1 inch of space at the top) and freezing.

My Tweaks

  • I always use two big handfuls of fresh basil from my garden. I chop it & add it to the onion/oil/butter mixture, just before adding the flour & saute for up to a minute
  • I never seem to have thyme, so I rarely use it
  • I add very little salt
  • My immersion blender is having issues, so I throw all of it in the regular blender as we like it pretty smooth
  • Always serve with grilled cheese
  • This freezes beautifully for months, so I always make 2-3x’s the recipe at once
  • Sometimes I add a handful of cooked jasmine rice (as with the batch pictured)

& thank you for the suggestions for adding a styleberryFOOD category! If you check out the “categories” link in the green bar across the top, you will notice some structural changes! For the better! Love your creative suggestions!! :D Keep them coming!

Hi! Hello! I am Shawna, the founder of Styleberry Blog. This creative corner of the internet has become a learning haven for moms and creatives, offering a warm and encouraging nudge to those who wish to be better and do better, but often don't know where to start. From Decorating to DIY to Diapers and Paleo-ish Dishes, I strive to make the complicated simple and empower women to take action beyond their personal comfort zone. I subscribe to the Shine Theory & so strongly believe that we shine when the women around us shine and mutual support—lifting up instead of tearing down--will always be the culture here. Are you in? I hope so! Beyond the computer, I run Styleberry Creative where I work with clients to create low fuss, high function spaces that are pretty and practical in San Antonio, Texas and beyond. I LOVE making a house a home. My own studs out renovation is now complete and I am now back to working with clients. Please don't hesitate to drop me a line if you'd like to work together! I hope you’ll join me on this fun new adventure! Xo.

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