{Creamy Chunky Tomato Soup}

I really love this time of year for several reasons one of which being the craving for cozy, warm comfort food.  Today was double coupon day at our grocery store and on my way there I decided tonight would be a great night for a big pot of soup.  Mike has been craving grilled cheese lately so I decided to pair that with some tomato soup.  Below is the recipe I threw together.  I hope you enjoy!

{Creamy Chunky Tomato Soup}
serves 4

• 1 tbsp. butter
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• Salt & Pepper
• Basil (two  cubes Dorot or 1 tsp. dried)
• 28oz can crushed tomatoes (recommend Muir Glen crushed tomatoes w/ basil)
• 14oz can crushed tomatoes (recommend Muir Glen crushed fire roasted tomatoes)
• 1 1/2 c. half & half
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 2 tbsp. port wine

Melt the butter and olive oil together in a soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic, salt and pepper.  Saute for 5-7 minutes until the onions are translucent and fragrant.  At this point add in the basil. I found this product at Trader Joes that I love!

Onions, garlic, and basil

Dorot chopped frozen basil cubes from Trader Joes

It's chopped frozen herbs stored in convenient little cubes.  I used two cubes and warmed them right in with the onions.  If you don't want to use the frozen cubes you could use dried basil as well.

Add in the 2 cans of tomatoes, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, for 15-20 minutes.  Uncover and add the remaining ingredients and stir.  Serve with a toasty grilled cheese sandwich!