In the Kitchen—Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

This is my take on grilled cheese and tomato soup. I wanted to have comfort food as part of a well-rounded nourishing meal. I include below my recipe for honey mustard dressing as well as vegan alternatives.

Grilled cheese sandwich. I used onion and chive cheddar from a Montana biodynamic dairy farm. Added a little fig jam (all-fruit jam from St. Dalfour); thanks to Katie for the tip. Sprouted whole-grain bread. Vegan? Daiya cheese is pretty good, and melts well.

Sweet potato fries. Or, as like to call them, yams. Toss with olive oil, sea salt, and cracked black pepper, put in the oven at 400 F, flip after ten minutes, remove when you deem them sufficiently crunchy.

"Chicken" salad. Boca's vegan chick'n patties cut into bite-sized pieces. Sliced green onions. A mix of spring greens and baby spinach. Honey mustard dressing: 1/4 c. cider vinegar, 1/4 c. dijon mustard, 1/4 c. honey, a cup or so of olive oil. Stick ingredients in a peanut butter jar and shake well. Vegan? Use any dressing you choose, or simply sprinkle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Tomato soup. Recipe in Better Homes and Garden New Cookbook (12th edition). Substituting vegetable bouillon for chicken bouillon, this soup is almost 100% fruits and veggies, way healthier than the Campbell's alternative. Fairly easy to make; you should probably double the recipe if serving for a lot of people or you want to make sure to have leftovers.