Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup

I used to love tomato soup when I was a kid. When I was feeling under the weather a few weeks ago, I thought about how I would eat tomato soup and grilled cheese as a kid when I didn’t feel well. I’ve always preferred tomato soup to chicken noodle. I always found the silky texture of tomato soup comforting. 

So I know that there are so many brands of tomato soup that you can go buy in the grocery, but if you read any nutritionist’s articles on store-bought foods to stay away from- canned soup is always near the top of the list! First, canned soups tend to be packed with sodium. And secondly, they’re usually full of preservatives to keep them fresh-tasting. Have you ever looked at the expiration dates of soup? They’re usually good for a year or more, which really makes you wonder what is going into that soup to keep it shelf-stable for so long…

Besides the fact that you at least know every ingredient (and can pronounce them) that’s going into your homemade soup, have you ever tasted homemade tomato soup?! There isn’t even a competition. Hands down, homemade tomato soup EVERY time.

For this recipe, I not only added red peppers to it, but I roasted both the red peppers and the tomatoes for an added depth of flavor. You don’t have to roast your tomatoes, but it literally is almost no work and only takes about 25 minutes to cook them in the oven. If you do choose to roast them, you won’t regret it. 

As as far as roasting the red peppers goes, there are two ways to accomplish this task. The first is to put the peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet and stick them under the broiler, rotating the peppers until all sides are charred. The second way is to place a pepper directing on a gas stovetop burner, rotating the pepper until all sides are charred. Both easily accom0lish the same thing. I tend to prefer the second method only because it’s easier to watch the pepper, just make sure to have good ventilation because the smoke from the pepper can burn your eyes if you stand too close. 

Once the veggies and the tomatoes are cooked and puréed, it’s easy sailing from there. After that, it’s simply combining everything together and letting it simmer to let the flavors marry together. If you’re not cooking up a grilled cheese to go along with this soup, I’d highly recommend making these Parmesan-Crusted Baguette Croutons. They are so simple and so delightful. 

Here is the link for the croutons:

https://cupcakes-and-sarcasm.com/recipe/parmesan-crusted-baguette-croutons/

Print Recipe

Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup

Prep Time

10 Minutes

Cook Time

1 Hour

Servings

Servings

Ingredients

• 2 1/2-3 LBS Fresh Tomatoes I used Romas
• 2 Large Red Bell Peppers
• 1 Sweet Onion, diced
• 2 Large Carrots, peeled and diced
• 3 Garlic Cloves, minced
• 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil, roughly chopped
• 4 Cups Vegetable Broth
• 6 Oz Tomato Paste
• 1/2 Cup Heavy Cream
• EVOO
• Salt and Pepper
• Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

Prep Time 10 Minutes Cook Time 1 Hour Servings Servings Ingredients 2 1/2-3 LBS Fresh Tomatoes I used Romas 2 Large Red Bell Peppers 1 Sweet Onion, diced 2 Large Carrots, peeled and diced 3 Garlic Cloves, minced 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil, roughly chopped 4 Cups Vegetable Broth 6 Oz Tomato Paste 1/2 Cup Heavy Cream EVOO Salt and Pepper Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

Instructions

Roasting the Tomatoes-

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spread tomatoes out across the baking sheet. Drizzle the tomatoes with EVOO (about 2 TBSP) and gently toss them around with your hands to coat. Sprinkle sea salt over top (about 1-2 tsp).

1. Roast for about 25 minutes until tomatoes are wrinkly and starting to slightly char. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.

Roasting the Red Peppers

1. While the tomatoes are roasting, char the red peppers until the skins are black. Place the charred peppers into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let them sit for about 10 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes, pull the peppers out of the bowl and remove the charred outside skin, revealing the soft and fleshy skin below. It’s okay if some of the char doesn’t come off, it will give the soup a nice color.

Assembling the Soup-

1. Cut the sides off of the peppers, disposing of the seeds and core. Place the red peppers into a blender and blend until completely smooth. Remove from blender and place into a bowl.
2. Remove roasted tomatoes from baking sheet and put into a blender with the chopped basil. Blend until completely smooth and pour into the bowl with the red peppers.
3. Heat 1 TBSP of EVOO in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat and add onion, garlic and carrots. Cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the vegetable broth. At this point, either use an immersion blender or move the veggie mixture to your blend to blend the veggies until smooth. (I had to use a blender to get the consistency that I liked).
5. Once veggies are smooth, combine onion-carrot mix with the red pepper-tomato purée in your Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Stir well to combine.
6. Add heavy cream, tomato paste, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper and stir until well combined.
7. Bring soup to a boil. Then lower heat to low and let simmer for 20-25 minutes. Serve with Parmesan Baguette Croutons. Enjoy!

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