From our pantry

I whipped this soup out of my back pocket the other day.  Okay, not out of my back pocket, more like, out of our panty.  Rebecca took pictures, but they turned out bad.  So, you will just have to take our word for it.

Old Fashioned Tomato & Rice Soup

3 tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped (white onion preferred, but equal opportunity is okay)
2 cloves garlic, minced (or pressed through a garlic killer if time is an issue)
2 quarts canned diced/whole/halved tomatoes (preferraby canned by the mother-in-law)
1/4 cup heavy cream (we had some leftover from making gingerbread caramels...another post for another day. Whole milk should work)
1 cup steamed white rice
Salt and pepper, to taste

Melt the butter, sautee the onions and garlic over medium high heat.  When they look right (translucentish) add the tomatoes with juice and bring it to  boil.  Reduce the heat to low and let it simmer, 20 minutes.  Turn off the flame and let the soup cool a little.  If you picked up on your wife's hints, you got her an immersion blender for her birthday to bring joy to her heart (I am dead serious here) and you can use it to puree the tomatoes.  Or use a regular blender, working in batches.  Stir in the rice and cream, bring it back to a boil, and season with salt an pepper.  Unless you want Chef Ramsay to yell at you, taste it before you serve it.  It's really great if your amazing wife has whipped up a loaf of her dutch oven bread to accompany it.

Like other hearty soups, it tastes best served with good company and snow on the ground.