QUESTION OF THE HOUR

I was sitting in Panera for lunch today, eating my half and half. Half sandwich and half soup. Perfect for this new fall weather we have been having. I am still getting used to the frost found on my windshield every morning. And I am definitely guilty of driving my car before my windows have completely cleared. I normally end up hunching over the steering wheel, peering out of the small area that my defrost clears first, and then haphazardly making my way out of my neighborhood. This is probably one area my patience needs to be improved...at least for the safety of all nearby trashcans and mailboxes.

So my order at Panera, every time, without fail, is none other than their tomato and mozzarella panini and broccoli cheddar soup: my faves. (I admit I can be a creature of habit) But today, the soup was unusually thin. Now as I have so well trained myself, I have these observations and immediately have these domestic diva type thoughts that follow. This is quite unlike my past reactions where the thoughts would leave just as quickly as they appeared. Now I ponder such problems with a domestic solution in mind. Mine today: What would make this soup thicker?

My immediate response was...add flour. I took this from a problem I had with my gravy the very first night that I cooked. However, I was not confident in my answer. And I knew that adding flour could be tricky. So today, after lunch, I decided to look up the "technical" answer too that question. Here's what I found...