A delicious, homemade version of a classic tomato soup recipe. This will be the only tomato soup recipe you will ever need. With lots of tomatoes, a creamy base, and a hint of parmesan, this soup is sure to please! We even doubled the recipe, and finished the soup in a matter of days. Keep reading to get the recipe, below!
Luckily, I used this recipe from Tastes Better From Scratch and I was thrilled with the outcome!
The weather definitely turned to fall/winter today. Last night, it began to get pretty chilly but definitely bearable. This morning, the high was about 45 degrees, and I am super happy to welcome cooler temps with this soup recipe and lots of others. Perhaps loaded baked potato soup will be next!
Ingredients (serves 8)
2 14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes , with the juice
2 tsp olive oil, if using stovetop method
1 cup carrot , finely diced
1 cup onion , finely diced
1 cup celery , finely diced
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves (Tbs fresh oregano)
1 cup fresh basil leaves or more (or 2-3 Tbsp dry basil)
½ cup butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1½ cups half and half (or whole milk)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
For the Stove Top (This is the method I used):
Add diced tomatoes, carrots, onions, celery, tomato paste, chicken broth, oregano, and basil to a large soup pot. Bring to a gently boil and cook for several minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Alternately, I cooked the onions for a few minutes with 2 tsp olive oil, then add carrots, celery, and seasonings to cook until carrots are a bit tender.
In a separate pot, prepare the roux. Add butter to the pot over medium low heat and allow to melt. Stir in the flour and whisk together constantly for about 10 minutes or until the roux is a nice golden brown color. Slowly add 1 cup of the soup from the other pot to the roux--it will start to form a thick paste. Slowly add another 3 cups of warm soup to the roux. Whisk together until smooth. Add the roux mixture to soup pot and stir to combine. Note - the rue + soup mixture was thick at first, but when added back into the larger soup pot, everything turned out extremely well!
Pour soup into blender (you may need to do this in batches, depending on how big your blender is)
Purée until smooth. Return to soup pot.
Stir in the Parmesan cheese, half and half (or milk), and salt and pepper. Add additional oregano and basil if needed, to taste. Stir well. Cook for a few more minutes until warmed through. Enjoy!
For the Slow Cooker:
Add diced tomatoes, carrots, onions, celery, tomato paste, chicken broth, oregano, and basil to your slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours until flavors are blended and vegetables are soft.
About 30 minutes before the soup is ready, prepare a roux. Melt the butter over medium low heat in a skillet and add the flour. Whisk together constantly for about 10 minutes or until the roux is a nice golden brown color. Slowly add 1 cup of the soup from the slow cooker to the roux--it will start to form a thick paste. Slowly add another 3 cups of warm soup to the roux. Whisk together until smooth. Add the roux mixture to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
Pour soup into blender (you may need to do this in batches, depending on how big your blender is)
Purée until smooth. Return to the slow cooker.
Stir in the Parmesan cheese, half and half (or milk), and salt and pepper. Add additional oregano and basil if needed, to taste. Stir well. Cover and cook on low for another 20-30 minutes or until warm. Enjoy!