Roasted Tomato Soup

5 from 3 votes

A simple homemade creamy roasted tomato soup with fresh tomatoes and fragrant garden basil is the perfect companion for a grilled cheese sandwich!

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine American

Keyword roasted tomato soup, tomato basil soup

Prep Time 40

Cook Time 55

Total Time 1 35

Servings cups

Calories 117kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

Ingredients

3 lbs. ripe fresh tomatoes (Roma, plum, beefsteak or heirloom will all work well )
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons butter
1 large Vidalia onion (or other sweet onion), diced
2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic cloves
½ cup all-purpose flour
6 cups chicken broth
½ cup white wine (or sub with additional broth)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup whole milk or heavy cream, at room temperature
½ cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves, plus extra for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425°F. Cut Roma tomatoes or cherry tomatoes in half lengthwise, or if using larger beefsteak tomatoes, remove cores and cut into quarters or sixths, depending on their size. Place the tomatoes in a shallow roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
Roast the tomatoes until tender and just barely beginning to caramelize, about 30 minutes.
Once the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins as much as possible (it’s fine if some is left on). Set aside, reserving the juices from the tomatoes as well.
In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 30 seconds. Add the flour and stir for 1 more minute.
Gradually add the broth and wine, stirring constantly to make sure that everything comes together smoothly. Add the roasted tomatoes with juices, and sugar. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer (uncovered) for about 30 minutes. Stir in the milk (or cream) and the basil; cook until warmed through, about 5 minutes.
Use an immersion blender or transfer a portion of the soup to a large blender to puree some of the soup until it's smooth. I like to leave some chunks of tomatoes and onion for texture, but you can make it as smooth or as chunky as you like.
Taste the soup and season with additional salt, pepper, or sugar, if needed. Ladle into bowls, garnish with additional basil, and serve!

Notes

Line the baking sheet or roasting pan with foil or parchment paper for easy cleanup.
Use a good quality white wine that you would actually like to drink (not something labeled as "cooking wine"). Nice options include crisp whites like pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc and unoaked chardonnay. If you prefer a soup without alcohol, you can substitute with additional chicken broth.
Chunky Roasted Tomato Soup: you can control the texture of your soup with the immersion blender. Puree less if you like a more rustic texture with chunks of tomato and onion in your bowl.
How To Thicken Tomato Basil Soup: adding the flour to the butter and onion mixture creates a roux that thickens the soup. If it's still not thick enough for your liking, you can simmer the soup uncovered for longer than 30 minutes -- until it reaches the desired consistency. Then add the cream and basil at the very end.
Fresh basil is always best in this soup, but you can substitute with about 2 to 2 ½ tablespoons of dried basil.
Cut the ingredients in half to prepare a smaller pot of soup.
Homemade roasted tomato soup is best prepared with fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes. However, if you'd like to make the soup in the winter when good tomatoes are hard to come by, you can substitute 3 cans (14.5 ounces each) of diced tomatoes for the fresh tomatoes. You don't need to roast the canned, diced tomatoes. Just add the cans of tomatoes (with their juices) right to the pot of soup. Use canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes to get a little bit of that charred, roasted taste.

Nutrition