Some days just need a good bowl of soup. Today was one of those and I pulled out this easy tomato soup recipe.
Today is my first day back home after my trip to London with Dewey. Unfortunately, re-entry has not been very easy. Evan has been having lots of trouble at school lately and I am honestly at my wit’s end. We are taking him to the pediatrician for assessment on Monday and then we will go from there. School has become a daily battle that leaves me wanting to sit on the sidewalk and cry. I realize that it is not all about me but that is how I feel because I am so helpless to help my little man be successful at school. He has an army of people trying to help him but we are all beginning to wonder if he needs more help than we can give. So….off to the doctor we go with words like “ADHD” and “behavioural issues” buzzing around my brain. As much as it hurts to think that your child might have a problem, it hurts more to not know what is going on.
So what does that have to do with soup? Well, Evan did not have a successful day at school so he got to come home early (very early). I went online and printed off some worksheets for him to do so that he remembers that school days are for school not for play. When lunch time neared, he mentioned that he would really like tomato soup for lunch. I wasn’t sure I had all the ingredients but after a bit of searching, I found a recipe that would work. It was very easy and delicious. Evan said it was the best soup he’s ever tasted. He ate his entire bowl! There’s something about a nice, warm bowl of soup that gives you strength to carry on even when you aren’t sure you can.

Easy Enough for Lunch Tomato Soup
Love tomato soup? It's easy to make without opening a can!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil, ~1-2 Tbsp
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 28 oz can peeled whole Roma tomatoes with juice
- 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground thyme
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- Optional toppings: croutons, sour cream and Sriracha
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan over medium high heat.
- Add onions and garlic.
- Cook until soft but not brown.
- Sprinkle flour over onions and garlic. Stir to coat.
- Add chicken stock, tomatoes, sugar, thyme, salt and pepper.
- Mash tomatoes with a potato masher or the back of a spoon.
- Bring to a boil.
- Lower heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Puree soup with an immersion blender or in a normal blender. If you are using a normal blender make sure to let it cool and do small batches or it could explode out of the blender. You will then have to reheat the soup for serving.)
- Serve soup with a dollop of sour cream, croutons and a squiggle of sriracha.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Amount Per Serving: Calories: 217Saturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 691mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 4gSugar: 14gProtein: 8g
Sherri
Saturday 16th of November 2013
Hey Merry. This totally sounds like deja-vu. We started having issues with D when he started kindergarten. Focusing issues mainly. Getting distracted, not staying on task. This was a common concern with his teachers. They all said ADHD. I wasn't convinced. A big part of me also didn't want to face the "label". We had him tested with a child psychologist (he was borderline). We tried the naturapathic route first (diet / omega 3) but in the end, after 6+ years of struggles at school, daycare, and home, we decided to try meds. He now calls them the miracle drugs and asks me why we waited so long to start them. He's been on them since January, and for the first time, he was sad that school ended in June , and wanted summer to end fast so he could go back to learn (....i do credit his teacher a great deal for this though. she is fantastic!). My only advice is go with your gut. Don't let teachers or medical professionals guilt you into doing something you are not comfortable with (we live with enough mommy guilt to last 5 lifetimes). You know your kid the best. Meds ended up working for us, but it wasn't out first choice. i have no regrets because i know we tried everything else first. there are no "what ifs". Hope it helps. ~S
Dana Brown
Thursday 14th of November 2013
Last year my younger son also was having major problems at the beginning of grade 1. It turned out to be a power struggle with the grade 1 teacher, and also the dynamics of kids in the room. I think he was performing for them, and as well they had discovered that they could get him in trouble quite easily. The 2 teachers in the room suggested moving him to the new grade 1 class that was opening up and it was the best thing that could have happened. I didn't hear even ONE problem for rest of the year. Good luck figuring it out, it's not easy.
Dana
Thursday 14th of November 2013
So many things can present like ADHD, so don't let them rush a diagnosis. When my first son was born I knew there was something different. I had worked with kids for most of my life outside university. Because of my knowledge they targeted me as the reason for my sons problems. I knew he didn't have ADHD (just from my years as a teacher), but I knew there was something. The psychiatrist told me that the reason they "knew" it was me was because I went in there looking for an outside reason for my son's issues, rather than crying about what a terrible parent I was. Ugh...this totally caused them to miss his sensory issues which were soon discovered by the preschool teacher and then by the school in kindergarten. Only a child psychiatrist can diagnose ADHD... Get a second opinion if you don't believe it. Good luck!
Merry
Thursday 14th of November 2013
I just don't know what to do. The school recommends going through a pediatrician so that is what we are doing. Does he have ADHD? I have no idea. He does have something that is keeping him from making good decisions and be successful at school. We have tried reward charts, consequences, rewards, talking, cajoling, begging, pleading and it is not working. He is having a really tough time and grade 1 is too early to set him up to hate school for the rest of his life. I pray we figure out something soon.