An entire jar of sun-dried tomatoes in their oil gives the four-ingredient blender soup complex umami and satisfying brightness.Quick-cooking sheet pan grilled cheese sandwiches, stuffed with a filling inspired by jalapeño poppers, are sliced to make “breadsticks” perfect for dunking in the soup. The combination elevates a classic soup and sandwich pairing — and is on the table in less than 30 minutes.
A jar of sun-dried tomatoes is the secret to the deep flavors in Jerelle Guy’s four-ingredient tomato soup. Preparation is quick and easy — an entire jar of sun-dried tomatoes and their oils is blended with a can of crushed tomatoes in a high-powered blender, then seasoned and warmed on the stovetop. The result is a tomato soup that’s bright and flavorful despite requiring almost no cooking or seasoning.
The jalapeño popper “breadsticks” are also largely hands-off: The creamy, spicy cheese filling is made from cream cheese, shredded cheddar, chopped pickled jalapeños, and garlic powder. It’s spread on slices of sourdough, assembled into sandwiches, and buttered, then each sandwich is set on a heap of shredded Parmesan cheese on a sheet pan and topped with more Parmesan. Baking these sandwiches for 10 minutes creates a crackly, deeply flavorful top and a crispy, cheesy frico, or “foot,” at the bottom that’s crackly, crispy, and deeply flavorful — it tastes like a toasted Cheez-It. Once removed from the oven, the sandwiches are sliced into breadsticks that are perfect for dunking in the thick soup.
The power of sun-dried tomatoes
Sun-dried tomatoes are ripe tomatoes that have been dehydrated to remove most of their moisture, concentrating their natural sugars and acids. Often packed in oil and sometimes seasoned with herbs, they have a chewy texture and an intense, tomato flavor. When blended into tomato soup, sun-dried tomatoes add depth, brightness, and umami, boosting richness and complexity without long simmering or additional ingredients.
Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen
Depending on the water content of your canned tomatoes and the oil content of your sun-dried tomatoes, your soup may be quite thick. The thickness makes it ideal for dipping the breadsticks into, but if you like, thin it with water, heavy cream, or chicken stock to your preference, and season to taste.
If you want a bigger frico crust on your breadsticks, make the Parmesan piles wider than called for in the method.
If you like, you can skip slicing the sandwiches into “breadsticks” — they’re satisfying and fun to eat in sandwich form, too.
Add extra flavor to the soup by using the jars of marinated sun-dried tomatoes.
This recipe was developed by Jerelle Guy; the text was written by Karen Shimizu.
Dining and Cooking