CARS – “Tow’mater” Soup… with Grilled Cheese

Cars.  My kids LOVE the Cars movies.  We probably have all the Cars toys ever made… dolls, matchbox cars,  motorized cars, pillows, you name it… we even have some Cars eating utensils.  So, what better way to celebrate Cars than with a big bowl of some good ol’ “Mater” Soup with a grilled cheese on the side!  This soup is a mom’s best friend (as in, it is SO easy and fast I made it in about  20 minutes… you could even say it is as fast as lightning – Lightning McQueen, that is).  Usually I like to make things with fresh ingredients, but I was going for something quick with what was around and I was pleasantly surprised.

I wish I could say that everyone loved this soup as much as me, but I’m gonna be honest.  My 4-year-old daughter wasn’t going for it, but she hasn’t ever liked tomato soup anyway.  My 2-year-old kept asking “more… more” after each bite!  And he is a picky guy, so anything he likes, I like even more!   My husband said he would prefer it more creamy (perhaps I should mention that he is a fan of Campbell’s tomato soup which, to me, tastes like a bowl of sugar with some tomato in it) but I think you could easily solve that dilemma by trading a cup of broth for an additional cup of soymilk.

We have a little sandwich maker that we use for grilled cheeses and other simple sandwiches (…have you ever had a grilled pb and j? Mmmm!!) I prefer Tofutti soy cheese slices (they melt awesome and are hot like lava- beware!) but the sandwich pictured actually contained Vegan brand Rice cheese, which my kids ADORE. (They love to eat it plain and also on crackers with cut squares of tofurkey “turkey”  slices.) But anyway… I think you can probably figure out how to make a grilled cheese sandwich, right? 😉

Tomato Soup

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 small white onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• < 1 – 28oz can crushed tomatoes (I used about 2 cups – the entire can was 2  1/2 cups.)
• 1/2 tsp each dried basil, dried oregano, dried thyme
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
• 1 cup plain soy milk
• salt to taste

1) Saute the onion with oil in a large soup pot.

2) Add garlic & tomatoes and seasoning and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes.

3) Add the broth and bring to a boil again. Simmer for 10 minutes.

4) Add basil, salt and soymilk.

5) Puree the soup with an immersion/emulsion blender (if you have one) or else puree in blender or food processor in batches.

Sometimes the simplest things are the most cherished! This is pure comfort food to me.