I love once it gets cold enough to make soups. It’s a simple plan for dinner and most of my favorite recipes are one pot wonders. One that my family really loves is the classic tomato soup with grilled cheese. What makes it even better is when the tomato soup is homemade. This recipe is so simple and tasty I make it every time and we rarely, if ever, eat it from the can anymore. It’s ingredients are ones I always have on hand so when we get the hankering for a hot bowl of soup, I whip this one up.

It starts with your basics. Carrot, celery, onion and garlic.

Next up are a few pantry items, like canned tomatoes and chicken broth. Half and half is always in the fridge since we are coffee drinkers. And it’s rarely expired unlike the one in the picture.

Drain a can of tomatoes, reserving the juice. You are going to add this to the soup later. Throw your drained tomatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper. It will be a mushy mess. That’s ok, it’s all going to get blended up anyway. These get roasted for about 15 minutes in a 450 degree oven.

While your toms are roasting away, saute your chopped veggies in olive oil. Add your broth, bay leaf and butter and reserved juices. You’ll pull out your pan of tomatoes and throw those in as well. Cook until your veggies are tender. Mix in chopped basil ( fresh if you have it, if not, dried works great) and cream. CAREFULLY pour into a blender, when it splatters it’s extremely hot so take care. Or maybe you have an immulsion blender and can save yourself the trouble. I like to blend mine until it’s just smooth, but leave some some chunks. I like my tomato soup a bit rustic. Pour it back into your pot and add the second can of tomatoes, juice and all. Heat and serve to your starving guests. If you wish to blend it all together, not leaving any tomatoes whole, you can certainly add that second can in before you blend it.

It’s hands down one of my favorite soup recipes because it’s so easy to throw together yet seems like you’ve slaved on it for hours. It’s fresh and filling and I’m sure will please any crowd you serve it up to!