There's nothing better on a chilly fall day than a warm bowl of soup. The Vineyard Mom joined us with recipes for a grown-up version of childhood faves.
Red Wine Tomato Soup
- 4 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion
- 1 carrot finely diced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground pepper
- 1/3 cup red wine; Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 3 1/2 cups vegetable stock
- 2 28 oz. cans of whole tomatoes
- 3/4 cups of heavy cream
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil for garnish
- Optional: 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Melt the butter in a large stock pot or dutch oven over medium heat.
Add chopped onions, carrots, salt and pepper (Optional: Add red pepper flakes here for spice) and saute until translucent. This will take approximately 8 minutes.
Add red wine and cook until the liquid is reduced to 2 tbsp.
Turn the heat down to low and add the flour and stir. Once combined, add in the tomato paste and cook for another minute.
Add vegetable broth and bay leaves to the pot. Using clean hands, break up whole tomatoes as you add them into the pot. Add the juice from the cans as well. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Remove the pot from the heat and using an emulsion blender, blend soup until smooth. If you do not have an emulsion blender, add soup to a blender in several batches. Blend until soup is smooth and add back to the pot.
Turn heat to low and add the cream. Adjust seasoning if needed.
Garnish with basil.
Gruyere cheese and spinach dippers
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 slices of sourdough bread
- 1 - 1 1/2 cups of shredded Gruyere cheese
- 2-3 oz of baby spinach leaves
Heat a panini press or grill pan on high heat.Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on 2 pieces of sourdough bread. Add bread oiled side down on the panini press or grill pan.
Sprinkle the top of both slices of bread with some shredded cheese. Top cheese with a handful of baby spinach.
Top the slices of cheese and spinach bread with another slice of sourdough bread. Drizzle the tops of the bread with more olive oil.
Close panini press and cook for 5 minutes until the bread is golden brown and cheese is melted.
If you are using a grill pan, top sandwiches with a weight to compress the sandwich. Another pan or a heavy can wrapped in foil will work. After several minutes, flip the sandwich and repeat.
When sandwiches are crispy and melty, slice into several long pieces. Dip into soup.
Recipes courtesy of: Leslie Dabney, The Vineyard Mom @thevineyardmomliving on IG
