Two Hearts and Homemade Tomato Soup

Can you believe it is already fall? With summer acting like spring through June, my best friend getting married in August, and Nate and I getting married in September, I hardly noticed summer had even started and I certainly had no time to even consider fall. But here it is, beautiful and crisp and lovely as always. And what is better in the fall than a good bowl of homemade tomato soup, grilled cheese, and someone to snuggle with? Nate and I have long had an addiction to the fire-roasted tomato soup at Paradise Bakery so I decided to take a stab at the recipe and surprise him with a yummy dinner last night. I made my own version of fire-roasted tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches with herb butter, and chocolate pudding with mint leaves. As always, he had to bear with me photographing the whole thing. :) Here are the results.


Fire-Roasted Tomato Soup

1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced

olive oil

28 oz. can diced tomatoes

14 oz. can fire roasted tomatoes

14 oz. can tomato sauce

6 oz. can tomato paste

4 cups chicken stock

4 t salt

1 t pepper (to taste)

2 t basil

2 cups milk
Sour cream, fresh basil, and tortilla chips to garnish (optional)

In a large pot, saute onion in olive oil. Add garlic and saute a few more minutes. Add tomatoes, sauce, paste, spices and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer for about 30 minutes. Add milk and continue to simmer for another 5-10 minutes.


Chocolate Pudding with Mint Leaves



Here is the pudding. Yum!