Fresh Tomato Soup

Fresh Tomato Soup is our favorite way to preserve summer’s peak flavors – and the best part is that you can enjoy it now and later (this soup freezes beautifully!). If you have a cache of fresh tomatoes from your garden or local farmer’s market, make this creamy tomato basil soup in one hour to preserve them at their peak.

Whether you’re plucking pounds of early girls in July, or marveling at your cherry tomatoes bursting with fruit during “second summer” in September, all tomato growers can relate – from time to time, you’ve just got too many fresh tomatoes!

While this lands squarely in the “good problem” column, it’s still a problem, amirite? In our house, the solution is one of two things – fresh tomato pasta sauce or fresh tomato soup.

While we love and crave roasted tomato soup, busy people everywhere can agree that a one-hour, one-pot soup recipe really does hit the spot.

Fresh Tomatoes Make for the Best Tomato Soup

We loved canned tomatoes for plenty of recipes, but when it comes to tomato soup, the best tomatoes are the freshest, ripest tomatoes you can find – and varietal doesn’t matter a bit. And frankly, neither do looks.

Creamy tomato basil soup is a perfect excuse to round up “imperfect” seconds from your local farmer’s market or your own garden. We used a combination of Roma and cherry tomatoes from our backyard garden.

Ingredients

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this tomato basil soup recipe. Find ingredient notes below the collage.

• Fresh Tomatoes: varietal, shape, and size don’t matter, as long as your tomatoes are ripe and juicy!
• Butter and olive oil: a combination of butter and olive oil is both more flavorful, and prevents the butter from burning or turning brown.
• Mirepoix: a combination of onions, carrots, and celery, mirepoix is often the first layer of flavor in homemade soup recipes. We use two parts sweet onion, to one part carrots and one part celery. Mirepoix vegetables are cooked over low heat until they soften; the low heat will intensify their sweet flavors, but since the vegetables don’t brown, their flavor won’t compete with the stars of the show.
• Garlic: fresh garlic lends tons of flavor and is a natural flavor companion to tomatoes.
• Balsamic Vinegar: I always deglaze soup vegetables with a nice hit of acid, usually wine or vinegar. Balsamic works so well here because it sweetens as it reduces, and again, is a natural pairing with fresh tomatoes.
• Sugar: we add just a teaspoon of sugar to our tomato soup to help balance the acidity. Omit if the acidity doesn’t bother you, or increase to two teaspoons if you’re very sensitive to acid.
• Broth: both chicken or vegetable broth work beautifully. Choose a low sodium variety for better control over the salt content.
• Herbs: add dried basil and dried oregano before simmering; add fresh basil just before pureeing.
• Kosher salt: salt enhances the existing flavors in any dish, but most importantly, it helps to balance acidity. Tomatoes need a healthy dose of salt to make them sing. Our recipe calls for 1.5 teaspoons of kosher salt, but if you’re sensitive to salt, start with ¾ teaspoon and add more to taste later.
• Heavy cream: added after simmering, heavy cream makes this soup rich and robust.
• Ricotta cheese: we serve tomato soup with a dollop of ricotta cheese for an extra-rich finishing touch.

Essential Notes and Tips

• Avoid commercial tomatoes if you can. Grocery store tomatoes are often ripened “off the vine” – this means they’re picked while underripe and the quality suffers. When we say “fresh tomatoes” we mean FRESH – homegrown tomatoes from your garden or fresh tomatoes from the farmer’s market are the way to go.
• Sensitive to acid? Add ½ teaspoon of baking soda with tomatoes and broth to help neutralize the acidity of the tomatoes.
• If you want to serve your fresh tomato soup with ricotta, you’ll have plenty of time to make fresh ricotta cheese while the soup simmers – it only takes 30 minutes!

Serving Suggestions

Of course nothing beats tomato soup with grilled cheese. It’s a classic! But, you can also keep it classic while keeping it light and fresh with a soup and salad combo.

Recipe Video

Fresh Tomato Basil Soup

Author: Danielle Esposti

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Fresh tomato soup is better than anything you'll find in a can. Use any tomatoes you have on hand, as long as they're ripe and juicy. A great tomato soup has the perfect balance between acidity and sweetness, so don't skip or skimp on the ingredients that get you there – a bit of sugar, kosher salt, and heavy cream. This recipe freezes beautifully, so make a double batch for a taste of summer in the depths of winter.

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 45 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr

Servings : 4

Calories: 240

Recommended Equipment

• Dutch Oven
• Immersion Blender

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 medium Vidalia (sweet) onion, diced to ½”
• 2 medium carrots, diced to ½”
• 2 stalks celery, diced to ½”
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and chopped, see Note 1
• 1 teaspoon sugar, optional, see Note 2
• 1.5 teaspoon kosher salt, see Note 3
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 cups low sodium broth, chicken or vegetable
• ¼ c fresh julienned basil, plus more for serving
• ½ c heavy cream, optional
• ricotta cheese, for serving

Instructions

• Heat a dutch oven over medium heat; add the oil and butter and heat until the butter melts then foams. Add onion, carrots, celery and toss to coat in the fat. Saute, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften and start to brown in spots, 8-10 minutes. Add the garlic and saute, stirring constantly, for 1 minute more.
• Pour in the balsamic vinegar; stir and scrape the bottom of the pot until the vinegar stops bubbling. Cook an additional 2-5 minutes, until the vinegar has been reduced and/or mostly absorbed; you shouldn't see any vinegar pooling on the bottom of the pot; see Note 4.
• Add the tomatoes, sugar (if using), salt, dried basil, dried oregano, and broth. Stir the pot contents until well combined.
• Increase the heat to high and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce to medium low to maintain a gentle simmer. Partially cover (see Note 5) with the lid cracked and simmer at least 30 minutes, and up to 1 hour, until the vegetables are very soft and the tomatoes are deep red.
• Add the fresh basil and heavy cream, then puree using an immersion blender until smooth. Taste for seasoning and adjust the salt or sugar to taste.
• Portion into bowls and serve with a dollop of ricotta cheese and more fresh basil. Enjoy!

Notes

Note 1. Use any tomatoes that you have on hand or can easily purchase, as long as they’re ripe and juicy! This recipe is perfect for affordable tomatoes, like “seconds” from the farmer’s market or any vine tomatoes that happen to be on sale. Do remove the cores, but there’s no need to remove the seeds.

Note 2. Sugar balances acidity, and tomatoes are quite acidic. Just a teaspoon helps without making the soup overly sweet.

Note 3. Salt enhances the flavor of tomatoes. If you’re sensitive to sodium, start with ¾ teaspoon and add more when you taste for seasoning in the last step.

Note 4. Balsamic vinegar will sweeten as it reduces, so it’s important to allow it to fully cook down and absorb before proceeding. 

Note 5. Tomatoes have a very high water content that will release as the soup simmers. Partially cover to trap in the majority of the moisture while allowing a bit to evaporate; this prevents you from having a watery soup. If too much moisture has evaporated, you can always add a bit more broth after pureeing. 

Storing and Reheating

• In the fridge: leftover tomato soup will keep for up to 5 days in a sealed container in the fridge.
• In the freezer: typically cream soups do not store well as the dairy separates after defrosting. However, with only half a cup of heavy cream, this tomato soup freezes beautifully! Store in an air-tight container in the freezer for up to 4 months. Place in the fridge overnight to defrost, and reheat as directed.
• Reheating: simmer in a pot over medium heat until the tomato basil soup starts to bubble around the edges; reheat single portions in the microwave in 45-second increments, stirring in-between, until warm.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 2cups, Calories: 240kcal (12%), Carbohydrates: 25g (8%), Protein: 5g (10%), Fat: 15g (23%), Saturated Fat: 9g (45%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 41mg (14%), Sodium: 856mg (36%), Potassium: 1063mg (30%), Fiber: 6g (24%), Sugar: 14g (16%), Vitamin A: 353% (353%), Vitamin C: 84% (84%), Calcium: 10% (10%), Iron: 8% (8%)

Did you make this recipe?Mention @oursaltykitchen or tag #oursaltykitchen!

Step-By-Step Recipe Photos

1. In a dutch oven over medium high heat, saute mirepoix (onions, carrots, and celery) in olive oil and butter until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more, until very fragrant.
2. Pour in the balsamic vinegar to deglaze the bottom of the pot. Scrape up any clinging bits, then simmer until the balsamic is mostly absorbed and/or reduced; you should see very little vinegar pooling at the bottom of the pot.

3. Add the fresh tomatoes, sugar, salt, dried basil, dried oregano, and broth. Give everything a good stir, then bring the liquids to a boil over high heat.
4. Reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer. Partially cover, then simmer 30-60 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and deep red in color.

5. Add the fresh basil and heavy cream, then puree with an immersion blender until very smooth. Taste for seasoning and adjust the salt, pepper, and/or sugar until the flavor sings.
6. Portion into bowls with a dollop of ricotta cheese and more fresh basil. Enjoy!