Tomato Basil Soup Shooters with Mini Grilled Cheese

By Callie  

There is a specific category of appetizer where the presentation does half the work – where the format itself communicates fun, warmth, and the fact that someone thought about the details before the food is even tasted. Tomato basil soup shooters with mini grilled cheese are exactly this category. Small shot glasses or mini cups filled with creamy, velvety tomato soup, each one served with a tiny square of buttery grilled cheese alongside for dipping. The miniaturization of the most universally comforting lunch combination – tomato soup and grilled cheese – into a two-bite appetizer format produces a reaction that is both immediate and genuine: every person who sees this appetizer for the first time smiles before they eat it. That’s not something you can say about most food.

The soup itself comes together in 15 minutes from pantry staples: crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, heavy cream, fresh basil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Using San Marzano tomatoes (or any good-quality Italian crushed tomatoes) produces a soup with a noticeably more complex, sweeter, less acidic tomato flavor than a generic store-brand can provides. The immersion blender step – running the soup smooth before serving – is what produces the restaurant-quality velvety texture that makes a simple 15-minute soup feel like something that required more effort than it did.

I made these for the first time for a Valentine’s Day dinner gathering where I wanted a warm, substantial first course that didn’t require plates, forks, or seating arrangement. The shot glass format means guests can hold the soup cup in one hand and the mini grilled cheese in the other while standing, which solves the standing-cocktail-party-food logistics problem completely. Emily’s response, before eating: “this is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.” After eating: she asked if there were more. There were. She had two more. The “cutest thing” was also genuinely good.

For the full, meal-sized version of the tomato-basil combination when a shooter-format appetizer isn’t the goal, the Roasted Tomato Basil Soup takes the same flavor profile to its most deeply developed form – fresh tomatoes slow-roasted in the oven before blending, which concentrates their flavor and produces a more complex, deeply sweet soup than even the best canned tomatoes can produce. The shooters are the quick, elegant appetizer version; the roasted version is the meal centerpiece.

Speed Hacks – 15 Minutes From Pantry To Shot Glass:

• Use an immersion blender directly in the saucepan rather than transferring to a stand blender – one fewer pot to wash and faster blending for a smaller quantity
• Make the soup up to 3 days ahead and reheat gently before filling the shot glasses – the soup actually improves in flavor after 24 hours in the refrigerator
• Use a ladle with a pour spout (or a liquid measuring cup) to fill shot glasses cleanly without drips – presentation matters and a steady pour into small glasses is much faster than a messy one
• The mini grilled cheese sandwiches can be made using a square cookie cutter on standard sandwich bread with regular cheese – toast in a skillet, cut into quarters, and serve immediately or keep warm in a 200-degree oven for up to 20 minutes
• A small pinch of sugar added to the tomato base (before the cream) eliminates any excess acidity from the tomatoes and removes the need for extended simmering to mellow the flavor

Why You Will Love These Tomato Basil Soup Shooters

• The miniaturized comfort food format produces an immediate positive reaction before anyone has tasted it. Tomato soup and grilled cheese is the most universally comforting lunch combination in American food culture – virtually everyone has a positive memory associated with it. Shrinking that combination into a two-bite appetizer format triggers the comfort-food emotional association while also being genuinely adorable in presentation. The format does emotional and aesthetic work simultaneously, which is what makes this appetizer specifically memorable rather than just good.
• The 15-minute soup can be made entirely ahead and reheated, with quality only improving over 24-48 hours. The flavors in a cream-based tomato soup – the tomato’s acidity, the basil’s aromatic compounds, the cream’s fat rounding – integrate and mellow as they rest together in the refrigerator. The just-made version is very good. The next-day version is noticeably better. For any gathering where same-day cooking is challenging: make the soup 2-3 days ahead, reheat gently before filling the shot glasses, and the appetizer course requires only 5 minutes of active same-day work (filling glasses and toasting the mini grilled cheese).
• The soup’s quality is entirely determined by two ingredient choices: the tomatoes and the cream. Good crushed tomatoes (San Marzano variety, or at minimum a brand where tomatoes are the first and only significant ingredient) produce a sweet, complex soup with natural depth. Full-fat heavy cream produces a velvety, luxurious texture and richness. Economy canned tomatoes and low-fat alternatives produce a thinner, more acidic, less impressive result. Two ingredient upgrades. Meaningful quality difference in a 15-minute recipe.
• The shot glass format solves the standing-party soup problem completely. Regular soup requires a bowl, a spoon, and a stable surface. Shot glass soup requires only one hand to hold the glass and one hand to hold the mini grilled cheese. No plates needed. No seating required. No spoon to manage. The format is specifically designed for standing cocktail party service and allows guests to eat elegantly while standing and talking in a way that bowl soup simply doesn’t permit.
• The mini grilled cheese component is both functional (for dipping) and additional food (a one-bite sandwich). The mini grilled cheese quartered from a regular sandwich produces 4 quarter-triangles, each approximately one bite. Dipped in the warm tomato soup: the butter-toasted bread and melted cheese combine with the acidic, creamy soup for the full tomato soup-and-grilled-cheese experience in miniature. The combination of hot soup and hot sandwich also makes this the warm appetizer that guests reach for first on a cold-weather occasion.
• The recipe produces a soup that is substantially better than any canned tomato soup and takes roughly the same time to prepare. A can of soup takes 5-7 minutes to heat on the stovetop. This recipe takes 15 minutes. The additional 8-10 minutes produces a soup made from actual tomatoes (not tomato paste and corn syrup), seasoned with fresh basil and real garlic, finished with cream to the right consistency – a categorically better product for a de minimis additional time investment.

Tomato Basil Soup Shooter Ingredients

Tomato Basil Soup

• 1 can (28 oz / 800g) crushed tomatoes – San Marzano variety strongly recommended; look for DOP designation on the can
• 1 cup (240ml) vegetable broth – low-sodium preferred for seasoning control
• 1/2 cup (120ml) heavy whipping cream – full-fat; half-and-half for a lighter version
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed, plus small sprigs for garnish
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder – or 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional, but useful for balancing acidic tomatoes)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Mini Grilled Cheese

• 4-6 slices of white or sourdough sandwich bread
• 4-6 slices or about 1/2 cup (55g) shredded cheddar, American, or Gruyere cheese
• 2-3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Equipment: Small shot glasses or 2-3 oz disposable cups for serving; an immersion blender or standard blender; a small ladle or pour-spout measuring cup for filling glasses cleanly

Ingredient Notes And Substitutions

San Marzano tomatoes – why they produce a better soup: San Marzano tomatoes (DOP certified, grown in the Campania region of Italy) have a specific sugar-to-acid ratio, a denser flesh, and fewer seeds than most other tomato varieties. The result in a simple tomato soup: more natural sweetness, less harsh acidity, and a fuller, more complex tomato flavor without requiring extended cooking time to mellow. The DOP designation on the can confirms authentic origin and variety. Generic “San Marzano style” tomatoes (grown outside the DOP region) are acceptable alternatives. For comparison: a batch made with San Marzano tomatoes has a notably sweeter, rounder flavor than the same recipe made with generic crushed tomatoes. For a recipe where the tomato is essentially the entire dish: the ingredient quality matters proportionally.

Fresh basil vs dried – why fresh is specifically better for this application: Basil’s primary flavor compounds (linalool and estragole, primarily) are highly volatile – they evaporate rapidly under heat and storage. Fresh basil added in the last 5 minutes of cooking retains more of these aromatic compounds than dried basil added at any point, producing a more vivid, more specifically basil-flavored soup. Dried basil, which has already lost most of its volatile compounds through the drying process, produces a more muted, slightly dusty herb note rather than the bright, slightly anise-like freshness of fresh leaves. If fresh basil genuinely isn’t available: use 1 tablespoon dried and increase the garlic slightly to compensate for the reduced herb complexity.

The cream – how much and when to add it: Half a cup of cream for 28 oz of tomatoes produces a soup that reads as “cream of tomato” – rich, smooth, with the cream present but not dominant. More cream increases richness and reduces tomato intensity; less cream produces a sharper, more purely tomato-forward flavor. Add the cream after reducing to low heat – cream added to a vigorously boiling soup can separate (the milk proteins “break” at high sustained temperatures), producing a slightly curdled, grainy texture. Gentle heat after the cream is added, below a simmer, allows the cream to integrate smoothly without separating.

Callie’s Kitchen Note: Emily’s “cutest thing I’ve ever seen” was the phrase she used, specifically, before tasting. The format earns its own compliment before the flavor is even assessed. This tells me something useful: for a party appetizer, the first impression (the sight of the shot glasses with the mini grilled cheese) is a meaningful part of what makes the appetizer successful. The same soup in a regular bowl would be good but wouldn’t generate that specific “oh, look at this” reaction. The format is doing work that the recipe alone can’t do. I think about this a lot when I’m choosing how to present something – the container and the format communicate as much as the food inside them, sometimes more. A good appetizer in the right format is more than the sum of its parts.

How To Make Tomato Basil Soup Shooters

1- Build And Simmer The Soup Base

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, garlic powder (or fresh garlic), salt, pepper, and sugar (if using). Stir well to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer – small bubbles breaking at the surface, not a rolling boil. Cook at this gentle simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have begun to meld and the mixture smells fragrant and tomato-forward.

The sugar question: taste the soup base before adding cream. If it tastes quite acidic or sharp – more vinegary than tomato-sweet – add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and stir in. The sugar doesn’t make the soup taste sweet; it balances the acid in the same way that salt balances sweetness. Good San Marzano tomatoes rarely need it; more acidic generic tomatoes almost always benefit from it. Taste is the guide.

2- Add The Cream And Basil

Reduce heat to low – genuinely low, below a simmer. The soup should be hot but not boiling when the cream is added. Pour in the heavy cream slowly while stirring continuously. The cream will immediately lighten the soup’s color from deep red to a warm orange-red. Stir until fully incorporated. Add the chopped fresh basil. Continue cooking over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the basil has softened and its aromatic compounds have distributed through the soup. Taste again and adjust – more salt, more garlic powder, more basil as needed.

Why Low Heat Matters After Adding Cream

Cream contains fat and protein in a specific emulsion that is stable at moderate temperatures. Above a sustained boil (212 degrees F), the proteins in the cream begin to coagulate and separate from the fat – this produces the grainy, slightly curdled texture that happens when cream-based soups are brought to a rolling boil after the cream is added. The fat and protein separate and can’t be recombined by stirring. Low heat (180-190 degrees F, below simmering) keeps the emulsion stable and produces a smooth, uniformly creamy soup. This is the most technically important step in the recipe: once the cream is in, keep the heat genuinely low.

3- Blend To Velvety Smoothness

Remove the saucepan from the heat. Insert the immersion blender and blend the soup until completely smooth – no visible basil flecks, no visible tomato chunks, a uniformly smooth, velvety texture. This takes approximately 60-90 seconds of continuous blending with an immersion blender. If using a stand blender: allow the soup to cool slightly before transferring (hot liquids in a closed blender can cause pressure buildup and lid failure – a dangerous situation). Blend in batches, holding the lid with a folded kitchen towel, and leave the center cap of the lid slightly open to allow steam to escape.

The blended soup should be completely smooth and a uniform warm orange-red color. If any visible particles remain: blend for another 30 seconds. Return the blended soup to low heat to maintain serving temperature while making the mini grilled cheese.

4- Make The Mini Grilled Cheese

Use a sharp knife or cookie cutter to cut each bread slice into 4 squares (or use the full slice and cut after toasting). Butter one side of each bread piece. Layer the cheese between two buttered pieces, butter-side-out. Cook in a skillet over medium heat for 2-3 minutes per side until deep golden-brown and the cheese has melted completely. The sandwiches should be brown enough that you can see color through the bread’s surface – not pale golden but a deeper, more caramelized toast color that indicates the butter has fully browned the bread surface. Cut each small sandwich in half diagonally for serving with the shooters, or leave as squares for a simpler look.

5- Fill The Glasses And Serve

Pour the warm soup into shot glasses or small 2-3 oz cups using a small ladle with a pour spout or a liquid measuring cup. Fill each glass to approximately 3/4 full – leaving headroom so guests can drink from the glass without spilling. Garnish each glass with a small fresh basil sprig placed at the rim. Arrange the glasses on a serving tray alongside or around the mini grilled cheese pieces. Serve immediately – both the soup and the grilled cheese are best within 10-15 minutes of preparation.

Callie’s Kitchen Note: The immersion blender in the pot vs transferring to a stand blender is, in my kitchen, never a contest. The immersion blender wins on every metric: no transferring hot liquid (which is genuinely dangerous in a blender), no second container to wash, and equal smoothness for a small quantity of soup. One caution: immersion blenders at high speed in a shallow pot can splatter hot soup. Keep the blender head fully submerged and tilt the pot toward you slightly to create more soup depth around the blender head. Blend in short pulses initially to get the large chunks broken down before running continuously. A soup splatter burn is unpleasant; a moment of caution during blending prevents it entirely.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

Boiling The Soup After Adding The Cream

The most technically consequential mistake. A vigorous boil after cream addition causes the milk proteins to coagulate and the emulsion to break – the soup becomes grainy with visible protein clumps that can’t be smoothed by further blending. Prevention: reduce heat to genuinely low before adding cream, and maintain low heat throughout the remaining cook time. If the soup accidentally boils with cream in it: blend immediately while still hot to break down the coagulated proteins as much as possible – this helps but doesn’t fully reverse the texture damage.

Using Generic Canned Tomatoes

In a soup where the tomato is essentially the only flavor base, generic canned tomatoes (with higher acidity, thinner flesh, and less natural sweetness than quality tomatoes) produce a noticeably thinner, sharper, less impressive result. The sugar balancing tip helps, but doesn’t fully compensate for the flavor quality difference. The San Marzano tomatoes (or any quality Italian crushed tomatoes) are the single most impactful ingredient upgrade available in this recipe for a de minimis cost difference.

Adding Basil Too Early

Basil added at the beginning of a 10-minute cook loses most of its volatile aromatic compounds to evaporation. The soup tastes of tomato and garlic with a vague herb note rather than specifically, vibrantly basil. Add basil in the final 5 minutes (after the cream is in) for the most vivid, most specifically basil-flavored result. The heat is low at this stage, which further protects the volatile compounds from evaporating too quickly.

Burning The Mini Grilled Cheese

Mini grilled cheese made on very small pieces of bread can go from golden to burned quickly because of their small mass – they heat through faster than a full sandwich and the smaller surface area retains heat more aggressively. Watch the first side carefully (2-3 minutes over medium, not medium-high) and reduce heat slightly if browning faster than expected. The cheese should be melted and the bread deeply golden when done – not pale (cheese won’t have melted fully) and not dark-brown-to-char (butter is burned, bread is acrid).

Filling Shot Glasses Too Full

A shot glass filled to the very brim is difficult to hold and carry without spilling, and guests can’t easily dip the grilled cheese into a full glass. Fill to approximately 3/4 of the glass capacity – this leaves enough room for dipping and holding without spilling, and the visual of a nearly-full (but not overfull) glass still looks abundant.

Callie’s Kitchen Note: The make-ahead quality of this soup is something I discovered by accident – I made a batch two days before a gathering because I was nervous about timing, and the version I served two days later was noticeably smoother and more flavorful than the version I’d tasted right after making it. The cream fully integrates with the tomato over time in the refrigerator, the basil’s flavor distributes evenly through the soup rather than being concentrated around the pieces, and the acid from the tomatoes mellows further. Now I always make this soup at least a day ahead for any gathering. Same-day soup is still good; the next-day version is specifically better. This kind of happy accident in cooking is worth paying attention to and systematizing.

Storage And Make-Ahead

Soup (refrigerator): Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat gently over low heat on the stovetop, stirring occasionally, until warmed through – do not boil. If the soup has thickened in the refrigerator: whisk in a small amount of warm broth or water to reach the right consistency before filling glasses. Alternatively, microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until heated through.

Soup (freezer): Cream-based soups can be frozen but the cream sometimes separates during the freeze-thaw cycle, producing a slightly grainy texture after thawing. To minimize this: freeze before adding the cream, thaw completely in the refrigerator, reheat gently, and stir in fresh cream just before serving. This approach produces the best frozen-and-thawed result. Freeze for up to 2 months.

Mini grilled cheese: Best made and served immediately. They can be kept warm in a 200-degree F oven on a baking sheet for up to 20 minutes without losing significant quality – useful for a party where you want to have them ready before guests arrive rather than making them to order. Do not reheat grilled cheese in a microwave – the bread becomes steamy and the cheese either stays cold or becomes rubbery.

Make-ahead party timeline: Make the soup 1-3 days ahead (it genuinely improves). On the day: reheat the soup (10 minutes), make the grilled cheese (8-10 minutes), fill the glasses (3 minutes), arrange on the tray (2 minutes). Total same-day work: under 25 minutes, mostly passive.

Tomato Basil Soup Shooter Variations

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup Shooters

Add 1/2 cup of drained jarred roasted red peppers (or homemade) to the soup base before blending. The roasted red pepper adds a sweet, smoky depth and shifts the color to a deeper, more vibrant orange-red. Slightly reduce the vegetable broth (by 2-3 tablespoons) to compensate for the additional volume. The roasted pepper version is more complex and slightly sweeter than the standard tomato-basil base, and works particularly well alongside mini grilled cheese with a smoked Gouda or Gruyere rather than standard cheddar. This variation echoes the same roasted pepper technique from the hummus recipe for a cohesive Mediterranean-influenced appetizer spread.

Spicy Arrabiata Soup Shooters

Add 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes to the oil with the garlic at the start, and increase to 1/2 teaspoon for more pronounced heat. Substitute crushed tomatoes with crushed San Marzano tomatoes plus 2 tablespoons of tomato paste for a richer, more concentrated base. Omit the heavy cream entirely for a lighter, purely tomato-forward shooter that leans into the spicy-Italian rather than creamy-French direction. Serve alongside mini grilled cheese made with pecorino rather than cheddar. The spicy version is specifically good for guests who prefer assertive flavors over the soft, creamy comfort food profile of the standard version.

Tomato Bisque With Mini BLT Sandwiches

Increase the heavy cream to 3/4 cup for a richer, bisque-style consistency. Add 1 tablespoon of butter stirred in at the end for additional richness and gloss. Instead of mini grilled cheese: make tiny BLT triangles – white bread with mayonnaise, 1/2 piece of crispy bacon, one cherry tomato half, and one small arugula leaf. The tiny BLT alongside the rich tomato bisque is a slightly more formal version of the soup-and-sandwich concept, appropriate for an elegant dinner party first course rather than a casual cocktail party.

Vegan Tomato Basil Soup Shooters

Replace the heavy cream with full-fat coconut cream (the cream that floats to the top of an unshaken can of coconut milk). Full-fat coconut cream produces a similarly rich, velvety texture and the coconut flavor is subtle enough to be largely undetectable against the tomato and basil. Stir in 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast for a subtle cheesy umami note. For the mini “grilled cheese”: use sourdough or country bread with vegan cheese slices (Violife or Follow Your Heart both melt well), cooked in vegan butter. The vegan version is genuinely excellent and the only thing that distinguishes it from the original is the coconut cream’s slightly different fat profile, which most guests don’t identify as specifically coconut.

Pesto Swirl Tomato Soup Shooters (No Blending Required)

Skip the immersion blender entirely. The soup will have a slightly more textured, rustic consistency. After filling the shot glasses: top each with a small drizzle of good pesto (store-bought or homemade, about 1/4 teaspoon per glass). The pesto floats on the cream-enriched soup surface and creates a visually distinctive green-swirl-on-red-orange effect. Top with a single fresh basil leaf rather than a sprig. Serve with mini garlic bread (instead of grilled cheese) – small cubes of baguette brushed with garlic butter and toasted. The pesto swirl version is the most visually striking of the variations and doesn’t require blending equipment.

Tomato Soup Shooter Bar (Interactive)

For a gathering where interactivity is the goal: set out the soup in a small serving pot or slow cooker on low, small glasses for self-serving, and a “grilled cheese bar” with different cheese and bread options. Guests fill their own glasses and build their own mini grilled cheese from a selection of cheeses (cheddar, brie, Gruyere, blue cheese) and bread types (white, sourdough, whole grain, rye). This format works particularly well for bridal showers, baby showers, or any gathering where the food activity is part of the entertainment and guests enjoy customizing their own bites.

Serving Suggestions

Presentation For Maximum Impact

Arrange the filled shot glasses on a rectangular wooden serving tray or slate board in 3-4 rows. Place the mini grilled cheese pieces in a small basket or pile at one end of the tray. Garnish each glass with a small fresh basil sprig balanced against the rim. The visual of a tray of identical, uniformly filled red-orange shot glasses with green basil garnishes is specifically striking and communicates that these were made with attention to detail. Bring the tray out after guests have arrived and are talking – the entrance of a tray of these into a room generates its own conversation.

As Part Of A Valentine’s Day Menu

• As a first course before a main of Bruschetta With Tomato And Basil and a pasta main course – the tomato theme threads through the entire meal for a coherent Italian-influenced Valentine’s dinner
• Alongside the cheese and charcuterie board and the mini spinach and feta puffs for a complete cocktail party spread that covers warm soup, warm pastry, and cold board in a single appetizer course
• As the sole first course before a more elaborate main – the soup shooters and grilled cheese together feel like a complete first course for two people at a Valentine’s dinner for two, requiring no additional appetizer

Timing For A Dinner Party

The soup should be hot when poured into the glasses, but not boiling – boiling soup in shot glasses is difficult for guests to hold and consumes too quickly. Fill glasses 3-4 minutes before bringing them out, allowing them to cool very slightly to a comfortable drinking temperature. The mini grilled cheese should be made as close to serving as possible – within 15-20 minutes – and kept warm if needed in a 200-degree F oven while the glasses are filled.

Tomato Basil Soup Shooter FAQ

Recipes You May Like

If these tomato basil soup shooters have you in the spirit of warm, comforting appetizers that feel like a occasion rather than just a snack, here are three more from the blog in the same category.

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup – The full-meal companion to these shooters. Where the shooter version uses canned tomatoes for a quick 15-minute preparation, the roasted tomato basil soup takes fresh tomatoes through a slow oven roast that concentrates and caramelizes their natural sugars before blending – producing a deeper, more complex soup that is genuinely worth the additional time for a weeknight dinner or a special occasion main course. Both use the tomato-basil-cream flavor combination; the roasted version is the most developed expression of it.

Bruschetta With Tomato And Basil – The Italian companion recipe in the tomato-and-basil flavor family for when the appetizer format should be cold and assembled rather than warm and poured. Where the shooters are warm, creamy, and designed for sipping, the bruschetta is cool, fresh, and textured with the tomato and basil in their natural form on toasted bread. Both use the same primary flavors; the format completely transforms the experience. Serving both at the same gathering produces the full tomato-basil range across different temperatures and textures.

Creamy Tomato Tortellini Soup – The pasta-enriched comfort food companion that takes the same cream-and-tomato base and adds cheese tortellini for a substantial, filling dinner soup. Where the shooters are an appetizer portion in a miniaturized, elegant format, the tortellini soup is the cozy dinner bowl for a weeknight when comfort food is the goal. Both are tomato-cream based; the tortellini version is the heartier, more filling application of the same basic technique.

Conclusion

These tomato basil soup shooters with mini grilled cheese are the appetizer that earns the “cutest thing I’ve ever seen” before anyone has tasted them, and then earns the third serving afterward. The format does emotional work. The soup – made ahead, better the next day, genuinely good from 15 minutes and a can of quality tomatoes – does the flavor work. The mini grilled cheese does the interactive, dipping, tactile work. Together they produce an appetizer that satisfies simultaneously as comfort food, as elegant presentation, and as the kind of food that makes people ask you how you made it.

San Marzano tomatoes. Low heat after the cream. One day ahead. These three decisions produce the version of this recipe that earns the silence, the second shooter, and the request for the recipe. Tell me in the comments what size shot glasses you used and whether you tried the roasted red pepper variation. Save this to Pinterest for your next Valentine’s Day dinner or cocktail party – and happy cooking!

Happy cooking! – Callie

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