My Eighty-fourth - Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup -100 Meals You Never Thought You Would Eat Pureed - Recipes for Head and Neck Cancer patients

My Eighty-fourth - Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup -100 Meals You Never Thought You Would Eat Pureed - Recipes for Head and Neck Cancer patients

I miss Velveeta cheese.  Nothing says November like grilled cheese sandwiches and a hot tomato soup.  Nothing says January like grilled cheese sandwiches and hot tomato soup.  Nothing says February like grilled cheese sand . . . OK JEFF WE GET IT.

Soon the snows will fall, and it's time to pull out the recipes that warm the soul and well as the belly.  The smell of a grill cheese cooking on the stove can also be an intoxicating smell.  I've had children run downstairs from a closed bedroom door, to find out what dad is cooking.

I miss Velveeta cheese, a childhood favorite.  I also miss Spam, but don't let my family know.  OK, there are a bunch of foods from my childhood that I have to sneak into the house . . . Cap'n Crunch. You're judging me aren't you?

I raised my children on Cabot Cheddar (I'm still a big fan of supporting local businesses).  They are still huge fans of Sharp Cheddar.  I also discovered the Cabot offers a Lactose-free cheese, so I'm going to be trying that soon.  So, I learned to cook at a lower temperature to melt the harder cheese and still get that nice gooey texture.


RECIPE:
Real butter
Bread - prefer white bread, really gummy white bread
Cheese

1/2 cup of hot tomato soup
1/2 grill cheese sandwich
1/2 cup warm water

MIXTURE
I will admit this is a personal preference.  I prefer a 1/2 cup of tomato soup to 1/2 grill cheese sandwich and then thin with water.  The issue is that your eat grill cheese, then tomato soup, then grill cheese, and then tomato soup.  You get a strong taste of each piece.  It is not like a donut that some people dunk into their coffee/hot chocolate.  Although, you will end up with the same aftertaste in your mouth; the idea of sipping a homogenized meal, might get panned.  Cancer treatment patients love to pan foods . . . but you knew that . . . 

This is definitely a meal that needs to be shared with others, because a full sandwich and bowl of tomato soup is to hard to manage to stretch across two of three meals - puree temperature is a bear.

TOMATO SOUP
Let's start with the fact that the acid in tomatoes can burn the mouth.  Second, we'll talk about how tomatoes can upset the stomach.  There, I feel better that we got that out of the way.  

Let's talk about all the different brands of tomato soup.  They are all quite different in flavor. I am a fan of "boxed soups", but several of them have been panned by my children.   If you are feeding a traditionalist - stick with your traditional brand.  This is a not a battle to be fought, you have other battles that are more important.

CHEESE
The important thing to note for lip-sippers is that the cheese can stick to the room of the mouth, and they might not be able to react fast enough.  For tummy-tubers, cheese tends to stick to the insides of the tube.  Which is why I tend to use one slice of cheese per sandwich.

BREAD
There are two sandwiches where my children have emphatically told me don't vary from Standard American White Bread - Grilled Cheese and PB&J.  We have them so infrequently, why ruin the experience.  I am allowed to vary on French Toast.  Once again, not a battle worth fighting.

MAC & CHEESE AND TOMATO
For the life of me I thought this puree reminded me of something, and I couldn't place it, until my daughter asked for Mac&Cheese.  In a pinch, Mac & Cheese and Tomato soup is delicious.  Especially, if the snow is lightly coming down.

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