This homemade tomato soup is made with canned tomatoes and basil, and a cheesy crostini for serving. It cooks in just 30 minutes, and comes out rich, flavorful, and can be made extra creamy too. It’s the most classic and comforting soup recipe that everyone is sure to love!
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What’s in this Easy Tomato Soup?
This quick soup recipe comes together in one pot with just a few pantry staples, like canned tomatoes and chicken stock.
- Tomatoes: Using canned tomatoes is the easiest way to make this soup. Use whole peeled tomatoes for best results.
- Chicken Stock: This is our liquid to help fill out the soup. You can use vegetable stock if you prefer.
- Garlic and Onion: Yellow onion and garlic cloves are sauteed to add flavor.
- Basil: Sweet basil creates the best flavor for tomato soup! Use dried basil in the soup, and fresh basil for garnish.
- Seasonings: Add red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, and a fines herbes blend (a mix of parsley, chives, and tarragon).
The cheesy crostini in the recipe card is made with a delicious cheese spread you can use on baguettes or another favorite bread. You’ll just need some cheese–in the tradition of fromage fort, collect leftover pieces of cheese from the fridge!
How do you make tomato soup creamy?
If you want a smooth, creamy texture for your soup, be sure to follow Step 5 in the recipe card. After heating the tomato mixture, you’ll blend or puree it, then press it through a sieve.
For an extra creamy soup, mix in a bit of heavy cream towards the end of the cooking time.
With a simple mix of tomatoes, stock, and a few other basic ingredients, this tomato soup is quite healthy.
Absolutely! Starting with a can of tomatoes makes the process so much quicker and easier. They are both flavorful and convenient!
You can use fresh tomatoes if you prefer, but I recommend peeling and prepping them, so it will take a little longer.
If you like a bit of texture in your soup, skip Step 5 in the recipe card.
If you want a thicker consistency, first I’d recommend letting the soup simmer a little longer. Or you can mix in a small amount of flour or cornstarch.
How to Store and Reheat
Store leftover tomato basil soup in an airtight container, and keep it in the refrigerator up to 4 days.
To reheat, warm the soup on the stovetop. Stir regularly to make sure it heats evenly all the way through.
How to Freeze Homemade Tomato Soup
To freeze soup, pour it into a freezer-safe container, and freeze up to 3 months. To reheat, first thaw overnight in the fridge, then reheat on the stove.
What to Serve with Tomato Soup
Nothing is better than a bowl of tomato soup and grilled cheese, so try this easy Air Fryer Grilled Cheese to go with it. You can also top your soup with bacon croutons for more crunch.
This recipe also pairs nicely with your favorite sandwiches and salads. Try this avocado egg salad and this chopped salad.
And I’ve always been a fan a nice baked potato on the side too, or serve it with cornbread. The options are endless with this classic soup!
This is the easiest tomato soup recipe and it’s so good–even the kids will love it!
If you make this recipe be sure to upload a photo in the comment section below or leave a rating. Enjoy! You can also jump to recipe.
Tomato Soup with Cheesy Crostini (Canned Tomatoes)
Ingredients
For Tomato Soup
- 2-6 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 medium yellow onion diced (about 1-cup diced onion)
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 28 ounce cans whole peeled Marzano D.O.P tomatoes w/juice
- 1 14.5 ounce can unsalted chicken stock (about 1¾ cups) or vegetable broth
- 1½-2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon dried sweet basil
- 1 teaspoon fines herbes blend
- Garnish: fresh basil sliced chiffonade-style
Ingredients for Cheesy Crostini with Fromage Fort
- ½-¾ pound cheese pieces
- 1 clove garlic
- ¼ cup dry white wine or unsalted chicken broth
- ¼-½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Kosher salt if needed
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried Herbs de Provence
Instructions
- Heat a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add olive oil and butter and heat until oil is shimmering. Add onions and cook until softened and translucent, about 3-4 minutes.2-6 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1 medium yellow onion
- Add garlic and cook 30 seconds until fragrant and bloomed.3 cloves garlic
- Add tomatoes, chicken stock, salt and pepper; bring to a boil and cook 5 minutes.2 28 ounce cans whole peeled Marzano D.O.P tomatoes w/juice, 1 14.5 ounce can unsalted chicken stock (about 1¾ cups), 1½-2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Place tomato/onion mixture in a food processor, blender or use a hand blender to puree. If desired, once pureed, pour the mixture through a wire-mesh sieve and use a rubber spatula to press the mixture through the sieve. This step is optional and optimal is serving the soup to young children. Many young children don’t want any green bits or texture in their soups, so it can be more palatable if very smooth. If your target audience is adults, this step is usually unnecessary.
- Place the crushed red pepper flakes, basil, fines herbes and basil in a small cheesecloth bag that has been tightly closed and tied. Place the herb bag in the tomato mixture and bring to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, 15-20 minutes, stirring often.1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 1 tablespoon dried sweet basil, 1 teaspoon fines herbes blend
- If desired, add a drizzle of olive oil to each serving of tomato soup once it has been divided into separate serving bowls.
- Serve with chopped fresh basil and cheesy crostini.Garnish: fresh basil
- Enjoy!
Instructions for Cheesy Crostini:
- Remove any rinds from the hard cheese pieces and freeze them to use in other recipes, if desired.½-¾ pound cheese pieces
- Grate any hard cheeses and cut softer cheeses into ½-1 inch pieces.
- Place the cheeses, garlic, wine and about ½ teaspoon black pepper in the bowl of a food processor. Process about 30 seconds or until a smooth (not too soft) mixture forms. Taste, and if needed, add a pinch of kosher salt. (Cheese is usually salty, so additional salt probably won’t be needed.)1 clove garlic, ¼ cup dry white wine or unsalted chicken broth, ¼-½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, Kosher salt
- Serve the cheese spread cold or at room temperature or spread it on slices of baguette and broil for a minute or two (watch closely). Sprinkle the bread with chopped fresh parsley and serve immediately.2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- Enjoy!
Video
Becky’s Tips
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was fabulous. I did not put it through the blender, preferred the texture of the tomatoes. Will definitely make this again,
I just made this recipe – didn’t have 2, 28oz cans of whole peeled tomatoes but improvised with what I did have which was a 28oz can fire-roasted crushed plum tomatoes, 6 oz can tomato paste (added with one full can of water) and 14.5oz can diced tomatoes. I didn’t add all the salt since I knew I would freeze and take ½ the recipe to my parents who are salt sensitive. I pulsed the sauce in my Ninja and although not completely smooth, it’s a perfect for our tastes! Delicious and will be even better with the sourdough toasted cheese sandwiches it’s going with … which I still need to make. :) P.S. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with instruction #3 withthe 2 teaspoons of sugar dissolved in hot water until I scrolled through the other reviews – kept thinking I was missing something since it doesn’t say to add to the pot.
That looks wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing what worked for you, Maria!
I loved this soup. It was fantastic. I only made the soup and followed the recipe exactly. It was wonderful.
Was the best and easiest homemade tomatoe soup I have made. So delicious. Thanks for sharing.
That looks amazing, Sher!!
Step 3 says: Dissolve 2 teaspoons sugar in ¼ cup hot water.
What do use for fines herbs in the cheese cloth?
You can use italian or herbs de provence!
What do you do with the dissolved sugar??
There is no sugar added in the recipe!
Step 3 has us dissolve sugar in hot water. Do we add that to the soup?
Yes, sorry about the confusion!