I should write, I suppose, about traditional Christmas or Hanukkah dinners. But those take preparation. Lots of it. And most of my food memories are about SiBY (Simple-but-Yummy) dishes you can fix with minimal prep. Yes, I love roast beef and Yorkshire pudding (or latkes). But, IMHBCO (in my-humble-but-correct-opinion), this is the ultimate comfort food:
Tom & Chee – tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches!
No American food combo so epitomizes SiBY as tom & chee. I even associate it with being sick. Wait, isn’t that bad? Nope, it’s comforting! As a kid, it meant I got to stay home from school and watch Rocky & Bullwinkle while Mom fixed me tom & chee.
Later, as a college guy, I fixed it for myself. What could be easier when it was raining felines and canines than heating up a can of Campbell’s Tomato Soup and smash-grilling a massive amount of cheddar between two slices of bread? (A proper grilled cheese sandwich is as flat as an old vinyl record.)
Plus…
I associate it with romance! My college acting teacher assigned me a scene with a former teen beauty queen. Oh, and it featured a kiss. My first thought was, “We’ll have to rehearse that part a lot to get it right.” She invited me over for rehearsal and “a quick lunch” at her apartment, and I thought “Yes! There is a God!” (I was an atheist at the time, but started rethinking that).
When I arrived, I saw two steaming servings of–you guessed it–tom & chee on her dinette table. Forget sharing a bottle of Bordeaux at a little café on the Seine (wait, no, don’t—that sounds awesome!)… I was certain this would be the moment we fell in love. It wasn’t. Or rather, it wasn’t for her. But we did become friends. And the kiss was cut.
Some time later, however, I did fall in love, mutually this time, with a smart, talented, beautiful girl who happily rehearses kissing scenes with me — every day! Oh, and 40 years on, what do we eat when we want something SiBY? You guessed it. And when we need a quick meal away from home? We often end up at a Cincinnati-based comfort food shop that’s named for its specialty:
Tom & Chee!
Agreed. John burns the toasted cheese sandwiches. Tradition.
Always a favorite comfort food.😍
rec use mayonaise outside bread slices to pan cook sandwich, best I’ve ever had
What?! I’ve never heard of this – sounds extra yummy! Must try!
Low heat, quick fry as may burn quick, beter than oil and butter. Thin sliced tomator with cheese inside nice variation flavor
This is great!
It was either Campbell’s chicken noodle or tomato soup at our house. I’m sure Progresso soup tastes great, but there’s just something about that sacred red-and-white can that gives it that special over-the-top ingredient: Joyful memories. 🙂
;>)
Nice
Felicidade. Sempre. Receba as bênçãos universais, abundantes, permanentes e prá todos nós
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No kidding, Mitch. One of our favorites as well!
Love the stuff, or used to. Has to be Campbells, has to be whole wheat bread. Both have gluten. the GF stuff is awful! But I made it often for kids whose parents came to Iowa as Bosnian refugees. They’ve grown up but now I made it for my Favorite Guy. Well, he mixes the soup. I’m in charge of the lovely melty, toasty sandwich, which he parks right on top of the soup. Yum. (in my memories)
Whatever floats your boat, Joy. Or, in this case, sandwich!
Bean with Bacon…and I’m in
Amy’s Cream of Tomato Soup and a quesadilla. A blend of cheeses between two tortillas braised in butter in a skillet on the stove.
Sounds wonderful, DK!
Love tom and chee. It really is the ultimate comfort food, I also love pea soup, pea and chee if you will.
;>) I’ll have to try “pea and chee” sometime, Seren!
Thanks. My mother would agree about the food. So do I.
Ah yes, memories … only this combo reminds me of Friday suppers at camp. (Possibly for thr Catholic kids who weren’t eating meat, but none of us had any complaints.)
My mom’s version of this was different, but I liked it even better. (I think it was a recipe from her Girl Scout days.) She would heat up the Campbell’s soup, but instead of adding milk, she’d add cheese – any kind or combination we had and liked. When thd cheese was melted, she poured it over toast, and we’d eat it with a knife and fork. We called it “Blushing Bunny,” I think a play on words related to Welsh rarebit.
😉🐰😋
Now that creative, Annie!
You got that right, Mitch. And sometimes we would live on the edge, get a little naughty, and make grilled cheese with ham and sometimes, even bacon! 🥪 😋
;>) My wife makes grilled cheese with ham and avocado. We have chips and salsa with it, and I dip my sandwich in the salsa. Everything is allowed!
Yum!! I’ve done the salsa but not avocado. Sounds great! I love grilled brie & thin sliced turkey on sourdough bread. Try it!
Sounds great, Nancy!
Momo and I eat that combo a lot in the winter. She uses two or three different cheeses on the sandwich, with mayo in the middle. I grew up eating that, along with baloney and rat cheese. I never thought about wine with that meal, but why not?
Wait, wait, wait — rat cheese?
Rat cheese is that big block of orange cheese: somewhere between cheddar and nothing. It was used in rat traps, thus the name. My grandmother always had a small block in her fridge.
Aha! ;>)
tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich is a champ in my opinion!
😋😋😋
The best. I have been known to spice up my chee by squirting a little brown mustard on it before the grilling takes place. I suppose a purist would say this is a perversion of the classic, but I love it.
Infinite variations are allowed!
Same here. Growing up we often ate Campbell’s canned tomato soup with a grilled American cheese sandwich made with white Wonder bread. Once, I was invited to stay for lunch at a friends house. We had grilled cheese and tomato soup, but the soup was homemade and didn’t cut it! 🙂
Homemade, eww! ;>)
Many pleasant memories of coming home for lunch
Apologies for the broken post. I’m a lousy texter.
I’ve many memories of rushing home from school on cold winters days to this simple but delicious combo
🧡
Big fan of comfort food, both home and away.
Best wishes for the end of the year and 2026, Linda ❤️🌟💚
You too, Linda!
Nothing beats Tom & Chee..especially cream of Tom prepared with milk and lots of black pepper
I agree, Matt.
always a winning combo in my book!
When we first got married and the kids were little we had to stay up wrapping presents all night and we soon discovered that making a big, “traditional” turkey dinner was just too much. So, we would order plenty of pizza on Christmas Eve (I have not found a pizza place open on Christmas Day) and then during the next day, if someone came over, we would just say, “There’s leftover pizza in the fridge. We’re not doing a big dinner this year, it’s too much work.” And now, over forty years later, we still do pizza on Christmas Day. It’s traditional. We love Tom and Chee, though. we sprinkle a little bit of garlic salt on the grilled cheese.
Comfort foods win the day!
This is your first inbox photo that is clear. I meant to tell you this before now that all your photos I received in your posts are blur.
Sorry about that, Bernadette. I have no idea why. You’re the first person who’s mentioned this.
Really. What more can I say, other than I am always fighting with the wicked ones the devil has in his hold. Have a wonderful day both you and your spouse.
You too, Bernadette.
i certainly grew up on this food combo as did we all of a certain age it seems. Never heard it referred to as Tom & Chee before, but a great name for a restaurant!
Great combo! 😋
Pure comfort ❤️
One of my favorites too. It makes me feel warm and cozy just thinking about it.
🧡
yummy
Gotta look up Tom and Cheese next time we go thru Cinn City!🤠
;>)
Tomato and grilled cheese has always been one of my favorites! Think I’ll make that over the holidays. 🙂
I so agree with you! My mom served this alot to us and my husband and I ate them many times in our first year of marriage. It was cheap! LOL! Still eat it. In fact I was needing an idea for supper tonight. Thanks. 😂
;>) Enjoy, Carolyn!
Tomorrow, we are out of cheese. That’s a crime, isn’t it. 😂
Not sure, Carolyn. It might be legal in some places, but it’s tragic none the less.
LOL! Tragic for sure.
Yep, grilled cheese and tomato soup. Dunk the sandwich in the soup in between spoonfuls, yum! My other combo is peanut butter and jelly with chicken soup, where I do the same thing. Everyone seems to be down for the grilled cheese/tomato soup combo, but I get a lot of funny looks for the PB&J/chicken soup one …
I can’t imagine why, James. Oh, wait, yes I can.
Grilled cheese and tomato sound awesome! Let us not forget Mac and cheese!
Oh, yeah, another regular must-eat.
Some of my foodie friends are somewhat horrified when they realise that my entire cooking capability is for SiBY food. Lightly fried egg and sliced avocado on Toast is one of my favourites, but some are more health, like simple boiled veggies and some easy-cooked meat. Seasoning, sauces, balanced flavours, etc are all a closed book to me, but I still enjoy what I eat.
That’s what matters!
Yes!
Yes! Along with meat loaf, my favorite comfort food!
Oh, yeah, love a good meat loaf!
My dad passed when I was only 8. My mom raised 5 kids while working full time. We often had this simple but yummy meal, as we kids could make it. I no longer eat tomato soup, but I still love grilled cheese sandwiches.
🧡
GC with Tomato Soup are the perfect combination! Lately I’ve been dealing with Chili and Cornbread infatuation, but perhaps I can be seduced back toward this for a few days. 🛵
I’m officially allowing you to have more than one favorite comfort food combination, Chuck. ;>)
There you go!
The ultimate soup and sandwich combination! Simple and nostalgic.
Indeed it is.
My favorite combo!!