Tomato soup has been a lunch time staple for as long as I can remember, along with macaroni & cheese and ici-ban. We usually served canned Co-op soup with grilled cheese sandwiches and/or lots of soda crackers to create a sort of tomato soup mush that is much tastier than it sounds.

Though I’ll still happily eat canned tomato soup when the mood strikes, I generally prefer to make my own. It’s easy, creamy, and wonderful with all kinds of bread and/or grilled cheese sandwiches. I like to make a big batch, divide it into containers, and take it for lunch for the rest of the week.

As you can see, a splatter screen is a good idea.

There is really only one thing you need to be sure of with this soup, and that’s making sure you cook the onions long enough. If you add something acidic (like tomatoes) to onions before they’re cooked through, they’ll never cook through. They’ll stay chewy/lumpy for all time. I don’t know about you, but that’s not something I really like in my tomato soup.

Creamy Tomato Soup

1 tbsp olive oil (pomace) (USA / Canada)
1 tbsp butter
1 onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 (798mL) can crushed tomatoes
1 (156mL) can tomato paste
800mL vegetable stock
½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp thyme leaves
2 tsp basil leaves
1 tsp oregano leaves
Salt & pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil (pomace) (USA / Canada) in a heavy-bottomed stock pot over medium heat. Sauté the onions and garlic until tender and translucent, at least 15 minutes.

Add the tomato products, vegetable stock, cheese, cream, and herbs. Cover with a splatter screen and simmer for 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve hot, with toast, grilled cheese sandwiches, or fresh bread. Yum!