makeshift tomato soup

A few months ago I went through this period of time when I kept getting sick. It was almost laughable. Like, constant, week after week, sick. Then, finally, when I got healthy again, I got pneumonia. Other than being home for weeks eating my moms chicken noodle soup, I made this yummy soup and time and time again.

Even when I'm not sick, I make this soup all the time. Nothing tastes better on cold days than tomato soup with tortellini and huge homemade croutons. It's just so good.

And luckily with this soup, you can't really screw it up. Like some people can't cook, I totally get it, but with this recipe, you have no excuse. No excuse people. Also, as my mom always says when I tell her she's the best cook, "It's just following the recipe. Anyone can do it."

When it comes to the "makeshift" part of this blog title, well, this soup isn't exactly crossing the line into homemade tomato soup land yet, I haven't even tried that out yet to be quite honest. It might change my life but as a broke college student, this is just so much easier, and to me, it tastes just as good. So when you are wanting to make an easy soup that takes all of 15 minutes to make a huge batch that serves about 6 (or days worth of meals for one), try this recipe.

What you'll need: 1 large shallot (or a small onion), 3 garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons of butter, 48 oz. chicken broth, 24 oz. of really good store-bought marinara (try one of the fancy brands with cute packaging), 3/4 cup chopped fresh basil (more if you really love basil like me), 16 oz. frozen cheese tortellini or mini ravioli, and a baguette if you want to make some crostinis.

Start by using a large saucepan to saute the shallot and garlic in the butter. Once its tender, add the chicken broth. Then add the marinara, then the basil. Bring it all to a boil on high heat, and then drop in the pasta. Place the lid on top and turn it down to medium. Simmer until the pasta is tender. You may want to slightly under cook the pasta initially, because if you eat it as leftovers they'll become a little more tender as they sit in there.

If you want to make some yummy crouton/crostinis slice a baguette into 1/4" thick rounds, brush both sides with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.

And there you have it, the easiest semi-homemade tomato soup you'll ever eat. And the yummiest.