Red Wine Tomato Soup with Fontina Grilled Cheese Dippers

This red wine tomato soup is rich, creamy, and delicious, and the fontina grilled cheese dippers make it a meal!

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How about a little wine with your soup?

This tomato soup is a rare dinner time unicorn because it's one of the few meals that every single person in my family will eat and enjoy. With six people in our family this is really hard to find.

This soup is lightly adapted from amazing OG boss lady Joy the Baker. It has a rich tomato taste from two types of tomatoes, tons of flavor from extra veggies and red wine, and a creamy finish from everyone's favorite - heavy cream. One of the very best things is how fast it all comes together!

Ingredients

• Butter
• Olive oil
• Onion
• Carrot
• Salt + Pepper
• Red wine vinegar
• Red wine
• Flour
• Tomato paste
• Dried bay leaf
• Vegetable broth
• San Marzano tomatoes
• Heavy cream

How to make tomato soup

1. Melt butter in a large dutch oven over medium heat.
2. Add the olive oil, onion, and carrot and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook 7-8 minutes or until the onions are soft and translucent, stirring frequently.
3. Add the vinegar and wine and stir until the liquid is cooked off.
4. Turn heat to low and stir in flour, then tomato paste. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
5. Add the broth and bay leaf.
6. Using clean hands, break up the tomatoes as you add them to the pot with their juice.
7. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.
8. Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
9. Remove from the heat and remove the bay leaf. Use a immersion blender to blend until smooth.
10. Add the cream and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Top tips

The best grilled cheese dippers

These grilled cheese dippers are made with fontina and sourdough bread. The fontina pairs perfectly with the tomatoes, and melts so luxuriously. I like to sneak in a little spinach with all that cheese, and if I'm feeling really crazy I'll include a drizzle of sriracha.

I make my grilled cheese sandwiches on my Cuisinart Griddler (affiliate link), but you can use any panini press or simply cook in a skillet over medium heat until toasty and melted, flipping once.

Tomato soup toppings

Do you add toppings to your soup? It's my favorite part! Go classic with oyster crackers or if you're like me you'll add pepitas for protein and crunch and a sprinkling of crushed red pepper flakes. This gives it an extra kick of flavor in line with the savory Italian flavors.

Tips for customizing red wine tomato soup

• Omit the red wine for an alcohol-free classic tomato soup recipe
• Use a gluten-free flour blend to make it gluten-free
• Use vegan butter substitute and full fat canned coconut milk to make it vegan (skip the grilled cheese or use a vegan cheese)
• Omit the spinach from the grilled cheese dippers if desired or swap in another leafy green or cooked veggie
• Swap the fontina for mozzarella, provolone, or cheddar cheese
• Add a drizzle of sriracha to the inside of the grilled cheese dippers

FAQ

More soup recipes

• Easy Minestrone Soup
• Vegetarian Chili
• Butter Bean Soup
• Vegetarian Tortilla Soup
• Vegan Chicken Noodle Soup
• Vegan Pumpkin Soup
• Vegan Carrot Ginger Soup

If you make this recipe, be sure to rate it, leave a comment, or tag #theliveinkitchen on Instagram!

Recipe

Red Wine Tomato Soup with Fontina Grilled Cheese Dippers

Rich, creamy tomato soup with a hint of red wine.

4.15 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate SaveSaved!

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 10

Calories: 633kcal

Author: Lindsay Moe

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Ingredients

Red Wine Tomato Soup

• ▢ 4 tablespoons butter
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 medium onion, chopped
• ▢ 1 medium carrot, finely diced
• ▢ Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ▢ ⅓ cup red wine
• ▢ Splash of red wine vinegar
• ▢ ¼ cup all purpose flour
• ▢ 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ 28-30 ounces vegetable broth
• ▢ 1 dried bay leaf
• ▢ 2 28 ounce cans whole tomatoes with basil, preferably san marzano
• ▢ ½-3/4 cup heavy cream

Fontina Grilled Cheese Dippers

• ▢ Olive oil
• ▢ Sourdough bread
• ▢ Fontina cheese, shredded
• ▢ Baby spinach

Instructions

Make the soup

• Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat.
• Add the oil, onion, and carrot and season with salt and pepper. Cook 7-8 minutes until the onions are translucent and soft.
• Add the wine and the splash of vinegar and stir until the liquid is cooked off.
• Turn the heat to low and stir in the flour. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Add the broth and bay leaf. Using clean hands, break up the tomatoes as you add them to the pot with their juice. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer. Let simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Remove the Dutch oven from the heat and use an immersion blender to blend the soup until smooth. If you don't have an immersion blender, add soup to a regular blender in batches, being sure to vent the steam as you blend. Add the cream, taste, and season with salt and pepper as needed.

Make the fontina grilled cheese dippers

• While the soup is simmering, make the grilled cheese dippers by heating a panini press to medium high heat.
• Drizzle olive oil on the bottom plate of the hot press and add a slice of sourdough bread.
• Sprinkle with a bit of fontina cheese, layer on a small handful of baby spinach, and top with more cheese.
• Finish with another slice of sourdough, drizzle with olive oil, and close the press. Cook until brown and melty, about five minutes. Remove from the press, allow to cool 2 minutes, then slice into sticks.

Notes

 

A few ideas to customize your red wine tomato soup with fontina grilled cheese dippers:

• Omit the red wine for an alcohol-free classic tomato soup
• Use a gluten-free flour blend to make it gluten-free
• Use vegan butter substitute and full fat canned coconut milk to make it vegan (skip the grilled cheese)
• Omit the spinach from the grilled cheese dippers if desired or swap in another leafy green or cooked veggie
• Swap the fontina for mozzarella, provolone, or cheddar cheese
• Add a drizzle of sriracha to the inside of the grilled cheese dippers

Nutrition

Calories: 633kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 104mg | Sodium: 1388mg | Potassium: 429mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 2980IU | Vitamin C: 12.4mg | Calcium: 440mg | Iron: 3.9mg

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