Homemade Tomato Soup (and Grilled Cheese!)

John and I had dinner at a friends house a couple weeks ago and they served us a delicious meal with homemade tomato soup.  I was inspired to find a recipe and try it out myself.  Here’s what I came up with!  Add your own variety of grilled cheese sandwiches to make this meal complete!

Ingredients

• spray olive oil
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 14-oz. crushed tomatoes, with juice (I like the one that has basil in it!)
• 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup fat-free half and half, warmed
• Salt and pepper

Spray bottom of large saucepan with olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until slightly softened and fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in flour to blend, about 1 minute.

Add tomatoes with juice and broth to saucepan, increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Stir or whisk constantly until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.

Working in batches, carefully transfer soup to a blender and puree until smooth. Return soup to saucepan, stir in cream and cook over low heat for 3 to 5 minutes, until heated through. Do not boil. Season with salt and pepper.  Serve hot in warmed cups.