Basil Tomato Soup

Now that it's getting so cold, soup's good to warm you up. I have about 10 recipes for tomato soup, but I'm usually in too big a hurry to do anything exotic. Here's a quick and easy one for winter that we really like.

1 quart bottled tomatoes (In season, I use fresh tomatoes.)
6 basil leaves
1 c. half and half*
salt & pepper to taste

I use my handy stick blender to blend the tomatoes in the pan along with the basil leaves. Or use regular blender. Heat through, add cream... (It curdles, but I again blend it till it's smooth.) *I often substitute 1/2 c sour cream or 1/2 c. heavy cream for the half and half, depending on what I have on hand. We like to eat it with grilled cheese sandwiches.