You’ve put in the work to grow and can those tomatoes. Now it’s cold outside and you are ready to create something warm and filling in the kitchen. This homemade tomato soup is absolutely mmm, good!
Homemade Tomato Soup
Equipment
- 1 Large Pot
- 1 Immersion blender (can use regular blender)
Ingredients
- 1 Tbs Butter
- 1 Tbs Olive Oil
- 1 Medium Onion, diced
- 3 Large Carrot, diced or shredded
- 2 Tbs Homemade Tomato Paste can use a good brand from the store
- 4 Cups Bone, Vegetable, or Chicken Broth
- 3 Lg Jars Home Canned Whole Tomatoes, or 3 28oz cans from store
- 1/2 Cup Heavy Cream Can use whole milk from home dairy
- 2 Tbs Chopped Parsley
- 2 Tbs Chopped Basil add a little extra for garnish if desired
- Real Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Allow butter to melt in pot on Medium-High setting
- Add and sauté garlic, onion, and carrots for approx. 5-7 minutes, or until they begin to "sweat."
- Stir in tomato paste and allow flavors to meld together for another 3-5 minutes.
- Pour in broth, water, and tomatoes, stirring everything to combine well.
- Allow soup to boil, cover with a lid and reduce the heat until soup just simmers for 15 minutes.
- Use this simmer time to prepare grilled cheese sandwiches, pasta, popcorn, or parmesan crisp add-ins.
- To complete the soup, puree in pot with an immersion blender, or transfer small amounts and puree carefully in blender.
- Once soup is smooth to your liking, stir in the heavy cream and allow the soup to simmer another 3-5 minutes.
- Ladle hot soup into bowls and top with fresh parsley, basil, and any other add-ins your family prefers.
How we prefer homemade tomato soup
Our family loves to have a little sampling of pasta in our soup. Some of my most common choices are ditalini (it means frog’s eye) and orzo. Some people choose to top their soup with a handful of popcorn. I like to dunk my grilled cheese sandwich in it so sometimes I leave it plaint. You may like your homemade tomato soup just as it is, and that is fine too.
These instructions call for the use of an immersion blender. There is a fine balance between completely pureeing it into a bisque, leaving your homemade tomato soup chunky and interesting, or finding just the right in-between balance that you prefer. Please watch out for flying hot lava soup if you use a traditional blender!
Variations to dress your homemade tomato soup up a little
If you are looking to please empty bellies, then however Mama serves the soup is fine. If you are hoping to warm hearts too, then maybe you want to give your homemade tomato soup a bit of an “upgrade.”
- How about adding in a good dose of fresh or dried basil? Tomato-basil soup is always a hit.
- Have you tried my Dixie Living Sourdough Bread Bowls yet? They are a snap to make and so very good!
- Do you have some jarred/roasted red peppers? They blend together so nicely to make a nutritious roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup.
- Do you have some garlic on hand? Roast or sauté about 6 cloves for a wonderfully delightful addition to this soup.
- Have you tried Parmesan Crisps? Simply mound 1 tablespoon of shredded Parmesan cheese into a hot skillet, allow to melt. Flip once and allow to brown. Remove and place atop bowls of soup. A crispy, salty, delight.
Final Notes on this soup
You can plan to make this about 3-5 days ahead of time and store in the refrigerator. My suggestion would be to complete everything through the blending stage, cool and store. When reheating to serve, add the cream at that point to avoid any separation and assure freshness.
Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for 3-5 days as well, but if you are planning to keep it longer than that, put it in the freezer. You can keep it in there for up to 6 months, thaw in a bowl with water, and reheat on the stove top.
Homemade tomato soup is always a favorite when served with grilled cheese sandwiches. If you are not in the mood for that, soup always is welcome served with fresh homemade bread, some brioche dinner rolls, garlic-cheddar biscuits, or a crusty sourdough boule.
Comment below if you made our Homemade Tomato Soup and let me know what you served it with. For lots more made-from-scratch recipes like this one as well as tips for preserving your harvest, dairy goats, duck-keeping, and living a more resilient life please subscribe to our Dixie Delights newsletter. No spam ever, just great information about the resilient life you want to live.
See you next time!