Simply Wonderful Tomato Soup |

There’s just something about homemade tomato soup in the winter (yes, even in LA) that warms me to my toes. I was never a fan of the canned stuff growing up, but real tomato soup is the perfect accompaniment to almost anything. When my friend served us this family recipe one night last year, I was blown away by how perfect it was and I’ve been making it two to three times a month since that dinner! Her recipe is a little creamy, a little tangy and a little spicy. It also freezes well which has been a lifesaver during busy months. I recommend pairing it with a grilled pimento cheese sandwich or sweet corn muffins!

Onions and garlic sizzling away in butter and olive oil.

Once the onions and garlic are done, everything else gets dumped in at once, making this soup the easiest to make EVER!

After simmering, I use an immersion blender to puree the soup at once instead of making a mess of the blender.

Sarah’s Tomato Soup

Makes approximately 8 servings

* I’m printing Sarah’s exact family recipe with my own notes in parenthesis. Make it her way or use my notes or make your own little tweaks…either way, just make it!

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced (I usually dice them instead)
3 garlic cloves, smashed with the side of knife and peeled (if the cloves are large, I roughly chop them as well)
5 cups canned whole tomatoes in juice (I always just use 2 28oz. cans of whole tomatoes)
1 cup water
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (omit if you don’t like things a little spicy)
¼ teaspoon celery seed
¼ teaspoon dried oregano OR ½ teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon sugar

Heat the butter and olive oil in a large saucepan, dutch oven or soup pot and sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes (I wait until the last-minute to add the garlic so it doesn’t get bitter). Add the tomatoes, water, cream, salt, red pepper flakes, celery seed, oregano, and sugar. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes (I cover the pot with a lid and usually let it go about 5 minutes longer). Remove from the heat and puree in batches in the container of a blender or directly in the pot with an immersion blender. If using a blender, return the soup to the pot and return to a simmer. Season to taste with more salt and pepper.
Serve soup hot or cool to room temperature before freezing.