Tomato Soup & Fancy Grilled Cheese Sandwich

What Makes a Grilled Cheese Fancy?

The secret ingredient in all of our recipes is obviously love. The second most important ingredient in this recipe is garlic. A good meal is all about balance. In this grilled cheese we do our best to make sure you get an excellent balance of savory, acidic, creamy, and punchy! The foundation for every good recipe is good ingredients. Levelling up your white bread to artesian bread is already a huge step up! Small upgrades based on what you value is the best way to ensure a meal best tailored to your taste buds.

A fancy grilled cheese just takes about 20% more effort but it’s definitely worth it! In our case, that effort is best shown in the form of a garlic bread exterior. Making a 10 second garlic butter and coating the outside of your sammy is leaps and bounds better than some spray oil or even a pat of butter.

Cheese is the main focus of a grilled cheese, of course, so you have to step up your cheese game. The common misconception is that expensive is better. Really what you want is a mix because, again, it’s all about balance. We use a mushroom brie as our base because it brings that depth of flavour and extra umami that’s easily found in mushrooms. It’s basically a cheat to make your grilled cheese taste irresistible, kind of the same way a lot of restaurants sprinkle some MSG on their fries. Brie is a very creamy cheese, so it’s important to balance it with the sharp acidity of gouda and the dryness of Manchego. These all work together to bulk out each other and make your sandwich seem overflowing with flavour.

How to Store in Freezer

The best thing about big batches of soup is their storability! The most common mistake people make is freezing it in a huge batch. It’s impossible to defrost without ruining the rest of your batch, unless you plan on eating it all in one or two sittings. We recommend using those perfectly portioned pint containers all restaurants use to portion out your soup before freezing! These are the steps we take every time to ensure perfect freezer soups!

1. Portion it out before freezing in single or double servings.

2. Let it cool before putting in the freezer.

3. Label it! We’re talking Name and Date or else it’s getting lost in the depths of your freezer. We’ve linked our favoruite label maker below..

4. Take it out when you can’t be bothered to cook again, reheating usually in a covered pot with a little bit of water!

DYMO Retro Label Maker

Freezer Container Combo Set

Tomato Soup & Fancy Grilled Cheese

Simone Peironnet & Abel Dawson | 1/29/2022

prep time: 10 minutes | cook time: 45 minutes | total time: 55 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients - Tomato Soup:

• 1 Tbsp Neutral Flavoured Oil
  
• 1 Onion, Finely Diced
  
• 3 Cloves of Garlic, Finely Diced
  
• 28oz Can of Whole Tomatoes
  
• 1 Tsp Smoked Paprika
  
• 1/2 Tbsp Dried Oregano OR 1 Tbsp Fresh Oregano
  
• 1/2 Tbsp Dried Thyme OR 1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme
  
• 1/2 Tbsp Dried Basil OR 1 Tbsp Fresh Basil
  
• 12oz. Can Coconut Milk/Cream
  
• Salt & Pep
  

Ingredients - Fancy Grilled Cheese:

• 8 Slices Crusty Sourdough
  
• 1/2 Cup Butter, softened
  
• 5 Cloves Garlic
  
• 8oz Mushroom Brie, or other soft cheese
  
• 4oz Gouda
  
• 2oz Manchego
  
• 1 Small Bunch Argula OR Spinach
  
• Salt
  

---

Instructions- Tomato Soup:

1. In a large heavy bottomed pan (not cast iron, the tomato juice will ruin the seasoning) heat oil on medium heat. Once the oil is hot add the onions and saute them until translucent and soft about 7-8 minutes. Set aside roughly half of your carmelized onions for your Fancy Grilled Cheese.

2. Add garlic and saute for another 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and crush them up with a wooden spoon, it can stay in bigger chunks. Add a cup of water and your can of coconut milk, and bring it all to a boil.

3. Once boiling turn the heat down to low, add paprika and season to taste with salt and pepper. If using dried herbs and all of them now and let it simmer for 15 minutes. If using fresh herbs let the sauce simmer on low heat for 15 minutes and then add the herbs.

4. While your soup is simmering, start your Fancy Grilled Cheese.

5. Blend until smooth using a blender or immerision blender. Serve hot, topped with fresh basil and yogurt alongside your Fancy Grilled Cheese. Enjoy!

Instructions: Fancy Grilled Cheese

1. Finely chop your garlic, then mix until well combined with your room temperature butter and a pinch of salt. Slather your garlic butter on the outsides of your sourdough bread.
   

2. On the unbuttered sides of your sourdough, divide your cheese evenly between your slices. Layer your carmelized onions and arugula. Firmly and with confidence, shut 2 of your slices together, as if closing a book. If you hesitate, your sandwhich is more likely to fall apart.
   

3. In a heavy bottomed pan over medium-low heat, gently lay your grilled cheese down. Flip once the cheese has visibly started to melt and your bread is browning, around 3 minutes on each side.
   

4. Cut diagonally and serve hot alongside your amazing tomato soup!
   

Still Hungry? Try these recipes!

Looking for more easy meals? Give these a try!