Bachelor on the Cheap

Don't have a can of soup on hand? No worries...

By Mike Thayer

So it's cold outside, you're in a comfort food mood, craving tomato soup and grilled cheese...  But you don't have any Campbell's in the cupboard.

What do you do?  Make a grocery store run?

Nope.

Make tomato soup using tomato paste.

Tomato paste isn't just for making spaghetti sauce, it can be used to make a pretty darn tasty and wallet friendly soup. 

To maintain the robust tomato flavor, mix with water. To add creaminess, mix with milk. For both robust and a touch of creamy, do 50/50 water & milk.

Ingredients:

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2 six ounce cans of tomato paste
• 48 ounces of milk or water (or a 50/50 mix of the two).  TIP:  Refill the tomato paste cans a total of 8 times, 'rinsing' out the remaining tomato paste as you refill.
• 1 healthy pinch of Kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flake (optional)

Directions:

Simple to put together and simply good.

Heat up a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the olive oil.  Dump in the tomato paste, water/milk and stir to incorporate until you get a smooth blend.  Stir in the remaining ingredients, cooking the soup until it starts to bubble.  Remove the soup from heat and serve.  Excellent topped with croutons or crackers.  But it's best when served with a grilled cheese sandwich!  Serving option:  Serve the soup topped with shredded mozzarella, diced pepperoni and a side of garlic bread for a pizza-like experience.

With every ingredient coming from the pantry, this soup is VERY budget friendly and quite tasty!

$pend Wisely My Friends...

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