Roasted Tomato Soup – Perfected!
This delicious and savory roasted tomato soup is a great way to use those garden tomatoes!
It’s tomato season at my house! This year my husband and I accomplished what I’ve been dreaming of for several years now, and moved our garden from the back corner of our yard to the side of the house. The garden area is much bigger now, and has much better light. My husband built six raised beds for me to make it easier to care for the plants. We were able to plant a ton of tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs, peppers, zucchini, pumpkins, and strawberries.
We even have an automatic irrigation system that waters the plants a few times a week, which means I don’t have to go out with a watering can or hose every morning. (Score!) Our plants have grown like crazy, and we are finally reaping the rewards of all of that hard work! Our twelve tomato plants are putting out so many tomatoes that I can hardly even keep up with them.
I first started making this roasted tomato soup about two years ago, and it is our absolute favorite way to use those garden tomatoes! My kids love it so much that they’ve been asking me all summer when the tomatoes will be ready, so I can make this soup. I’ve made the soup over and over and and over since I posted it originally, and with time I’ve perfected the recipe to make it even more delicious. It’s a little smoother and creamier, and has even more flavor. I’ve made a total of fifteen quarts of this roasted tomato soup for the freezer so far this year, and since the tomatoes just won’t stop coming, I can see plenty more soup in my future!
To begin with, the tomatoes are roasted on a sheet pan in the oven with some olive oil, salt and pepper, and onions. I always use a variety of tomatoes, whatever I have on hand. Usually I use a yellow onion, but a red onion will work in a pinch too. You’ll want to roast the tomatoes until they are starting to brown and are bursting out of their skin.
Once the tomatoes are done cooking, let them cool a little, then puree them in a blender or food processor. I use the smoothie function on my Blendtech, and that works great for me. My family is very sensitive to the tomato skin and seeds, so I like to push the puree through a fine mesh strainer to get rid of them. If your family is less picky and can handle a few seeds in their soup, you can definitely skip that step.
From there, you’ll make a soup base with a roux, then add half and half, chicken broth, and seasonings. You’ll add the tomato puree, and simmer until thickened. It’s super easy to make, and comes out so creamy and delicious! I used dried basil because I didn’t have any fresh basil on hand (my basil plant died earlier this summer – boo!), but fresh would work well too.
This recipe makes about 3 quarts of soup, or about twelve servings. I usually serve one quart to my family for dinner, with grilled cheese sandwiches or garlic bread on the side, and then freeze the other two quarts. It freezes beautifully (I just use quart sized deli containers), and it’s easy to pull a quart out of the freezer on a busy day when I don’t feel like cooking. I love that I can still preserve the taste of those sweet and flavorful garden tomatoes, all year round!
Roasted Tomato Soup
Print Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 pounds fresh tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion cut into wedges
- salt and pepper to taste
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 cup half and half
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450. Place the tomatoes and onions on a large rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast 25-30 minutes, then remove and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Scoop the tomatoes and onions into a blender, and pour all of the juices from the pan into the blender. Blend until smooth. Pour the tomato mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds and skin.
- In a heavy pot or dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and stir to make a roux. Cook 2-3 minutes, until bubbling and golden. Slowly pour in the half and half, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Whisk in the chicken broth gradually. Add the salt, sugar, dried basil, and garlic powder and whisk to combine. Add the tomato puree and whisk to combine. Cook 10-15 minutes, until thickened.
