If you have never made your own tomato soup, you should really try it. It’s so easy and the final product is so flavorful I promise you’ll be licking the bowl. This one combines a combo of both canned and sun-dried tomatoes and it also includes some cream cheese which instantly makes it rich and creamy. And unlike other “creamy” soups, this one is fairly low calorie, meaning you can pair it with a big toasty sandwich or a few warm breadsticks!
Ingredient Notes
- Sun-dried Tomatoes – These give the soup a unique depth of flavor. They are usually found near the pasta sauces or near other preserved/pickled foods in the grocery store. I’ve also seen them by the fancy crackers and preserves near the deli, or even in the produce section.
- Cream Cheese – Cream cheese gives this soup its creamy texture. Full fat or reduced fat will work well. Avoid fat free.
- Broth – I call for chicken broth here but I’m sure it would also be delicious using vegetable broth if you prefer a vegetarian version.
How to Make Creamy Tomato Soup
2. After the veggies are tender, you’ll add in both canned and sundried tomatoes along with a few seasonings and some chicken broth. After simmering, you’ll pop it in the blender with the secret ingredient (the cream cheese!)
And puree until smooth
To serve, I like to sprinkle it with some freshly grated parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of basil.
And it pretty much begs to be eaten along side a grilled cheese sandwich. Just so you know.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I make this ahead of time? Yes! This soup reheats well, so feel free to prep and store in the fridge or freezer for quick lunches during the week.
Related Recipes
Want to make it a meal? This creamy tomato soup would be delicious with these Our Best Bites favorites:
Smoked Turkey and Artichoke Panini
Easy Homemade Breadsticks (and Pizza Dough)
How to Make the Perfect Grilled Cheese
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Did You Make This?
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Creamy Tomato Soup
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
The combination of both sun-dried and canned tomatoes gives this creamy tomato soup unmatched flavor. It comes together quickly and is perfect for pairing with a gooey grilled cheese sandwich.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon reserved oil from sun-dried tomatoes, or olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
¾ cup shredded carrot
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2/3 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil
2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
3 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
optional: 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
optional: Parmesan cheese and fresh basil for garnish
Instructions
- Place oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and garlic, and cook for 3-4 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring often.
- Add sun-dried tomatoes, canned tomatoes, chicken broth, sugar, salt, pepper, oregano and basil. (If you’re adding red pepper flakes, add them now.)
- Bring soup to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Cover pan and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove from heat. Carefully ladle soup into a blender (do this in 2 batches if necessary). Add cream cheese. Remove center piece of blender lid to allow steam to escape, but place a paper towel over opening in blender lid to avoid spills. Process for a few minutes until smooth. You could also add cream cheese directly to the pot and use an immersion blender to combine.
- Add additional salt and pepper to taste and then divide soup among bowls. Garnish each serving with a sprinkle of shredded Parmesan cheese and a fresh basil leaf if desired.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
Questions & Reviews
My husband told me tonight after we had this soup for dinner that he was "very impressed"!! (Yay!!)Thanks for making me look good! 🙂
Samara- the chunkiness is completely up to you! All I can tell you is to blend it until it's the consistency you want. Just take a taste before you take it out of the blender next time.
Made this over the weekend and it had great flavor but for some reason it was a bit more on the chunky side than the creamy side. Is there an ideal amount of time to blend for to make it smoother? Thanks!
Made this for dinner tonight and it was both delish and easy- thanks!! My immersion blender makes it even easier.
Can't wait to try the new version … loved the last one, an all-time favorite soup recipe!!
Could I substitute the oven roasted tomatoes (from your site) for the sun-dried tomatoes in the recipe and still have it come out similar? I have a bunch in my freezer from last fall 🙂 thanks so much!!
I've made a lot of tomato soups – but this is by far the best! I omitted the sundried tomatoes because I had to make this the minute I saw the recipe and didn't have any on hand. still delish.
All I can say, is "WOW!" This soup is soooo good. (And, totally worth the search for the sun dried tomotates packed in olive oil with herbs.) Heaven.
OMGosh my daughter and I made this soup last night and we will never go back to the can. It was easy and yummy. We did decide that what would make this an even better meal is some pizza rolls. Thanks for the recipe.
AMAZING!!!! Okay, seriously, I have been searching for this recipe forever! I LOVE tomato soup and my favorite came from a restaurant that went out of business. I almost cried. I tried making my own version with heavy cream, etc. I never thought of cream cheese! It is the secret ingredient! Thank you sooooo much!
I love your blog. It is my latest addiction. I was getting bored with my recipes and found your blog just in time thanks to a friend. Loved the tomato & black bean soups as well as the lemon zucchini pasta. I am way excited to try a few more recipes out this week. You guys are awesome. Thanks for all the time you put into this.
I'm 17, male, and just started cooking, and I have to say this is one of the tastiest things I have ever made and the recipe was so easy to follow, thankyou so much Kate for posting it! Definately bookmarking this website!
Thanks for the re-post. I had missed it. AND we loved it…served in bread bowls, a complete meal. No nothing else…I added some fresh parmo and wow. I totally forgot the red pepper, though, so we’re trying it next time!
I love the addition of sun dried tomatoes! Thanks for sharing the recipe.
I made this for my girlfriends today and it was delicious, mine came out thicker than Sara’s, I wonder why? Also made the foccacia bread for the first time, wish I hadn’t waited…sinful!
This IS my favorite soup, and my family LOVES it. In fact, I tried to make it this weekend while we were away at my parent’s condo (full kitchen) but alas, the recipe wasn’t available on your site… probably ’cause you were working on re-posting. So, we had to make do with a different recipe, but it was WAY more fattening and not as good.
Glad to see this recipe is back!
I recently made a recipe very similar to this- but they did not suggest removing the center piece to let the steam escape… and I paid the price, the top exploded and I was covered in HOT tomato soup (and so was my kitchen) Thank you for the new, and clearer recipe!)
Mmmmm. This looks fantastic. I am going to give it a try.
I made this tonight for dinner. Seriously, the BEST soup I’ve ever had. It’s so good Sara!
Kara M.
This makes me really sad that I killed my blender making the black bean soup – Which was yum by the way.
Kate and Sara,
I got the gift card in the mail today!! I am super excited about spending it. I’ll keep you updated as to what fun thing I get!
I also bave you a shout out on my blog. Thanks again so much.
looks so good! i love how the cheese is translucent and just floats against that deep orange/red color 🙂
are you guys seriously taking all of these beautiful pictures with just a point and shoot? I’m so impressed. I love the pictures on this blog almost more than the recipes themselves.
Really, girls this was one of my favorite recipes! I got to making so many soups that I bought myself an emulsion blender and it makes the soup makeing even easier! Love it!
Hey, Brittany! 🙂 I’m sorry your breadsticks were dry! Yeah, next time I’d try them with a little less flour and see how they come out. Good luck!
I made this a few months ago and now I can’t bring myself to eat campbell’s anymore. Yuck.
It is soooo good!
Thanks! My bread sticks came out too dry though. Should I use less flour?
I made this on Friday. It was delicious. I served it with panini(just mozzarella,basil, tomatoes and balsamic vinegar & oil).
I have a recipe for a creamy tomato, but it is loaded with cream and butter, so thanks for a healthy alternative. This tasted just as good!
I made this on Friday. It was delicious. I served it with panini(just mozzarella,basil, tomatoes and balsamic vinegar & oil).
I have a recipe for a creamy tomato, but it is loaded with cream and butter, so thanks for a healthy alternative. This tasted just as good!
I made this on Friday. It was delicious. I served it with panini(just mozzarella,basil, tomatoes and balsamic vinegar & oil).
I have a recipe for a creamy tomato, but it is loaded with cream and butter, so thanks for a healthy alternative. This tasted just as good!
Yummmmmm…I made this soup and it was delicious!! I took Sara and Kate’s advice on how to make it spicy and added a bit of hot sauce and a bit of red pepper and it was the perfect amount of “kick” I needed! Thanks!!
Yum! I hadn’t thought about cream cheese. I bet that makes it yummy.