Name: Tom's Tasty Tomato Soup with Brown Butter Croutons
Yield: Makes 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon unsalted butter; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 medium onion, thinly sliced; 3 garlic cloves, smashed with the side of a knife and peeled; 5 cups canned whole tomatoes in juice; 1 cup water; 2/3 cup heavy cream; 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed; 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed; 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes; 1/4 teaspoon celery seed; 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano or 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano; 1 tablespoon sugar; 3 tablespoons unsalted butter; 4 slices european-style rustic bread, crusts removed, cut into 3/4- to 1-inch cubes (30 to 36 cubes); Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

When I was a kid and my mom made tomato soup, she would cut buttered toast into squares and float them on top of each bowl. My twist on Mom's toast is to make brown butter croutons, though when I'm really feeling feisty I go all the way and make grilled cheese croutons to float on the soup.

To cut the bread for the brown butter croutons, take a 4-inch chunk of rustic bread (5 to 6 ounces) and cut off and discard the crusts using a serrated knife. Cut the bread into 4 slices, then cut the slices into 3/4- to 1-inch cubes.

Ingredients

Makes 6 servings

Soup

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

3 garlic cloves, smashed with the side of a knife and peeled

5 cups canned whole tomatoes in juice

1 cup water

2/3 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon celery seed

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano or 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano

1 tablespoon sugar

Brown Butter Croutons

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 slices european-style rustic bread, crusts removed, cut into 3/4- to 1-inch cubes (30 to 36 cubes)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

Step 1
1. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, water, cream, salt, red pepper flakes, celery seed, oregano, and sugar. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and simmer for 15 minutes.
Step 2
2. Remove from the heat and puree in batches in the container of a blender. Return the soup to the pot and reheat to a simmer, seasoning to taste with more salt and pepper.
Step 3
3. Meanwhile, to make the brown butter croutons, preheat the oven to 350°F. Heat the butter in a small pan over medium heat and cook, stirring often, until the butter is golden brown and aromatic, about 3 minutes after the butter melts. Remove from the heat. Put the bread cubes in a bowl and pour the brown butter over them, tossing to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper and toss again. Spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet and place it in the oven. Bake until the croutons are toasted and golden, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from the oven.
Step 4
4. Serve the soup hot, garnished with the croutons.

Leave a Review

Reviews (46)

Favorite tomato soup! I substitute chicken broth instead of water. The croutons are so easy to make and are absolutely amazing that I can't imagine eating the soup without them. I also use an immersion blender rather than transferring the soup to a blender.
- nfinn91
- Mountain Lakes, NJ
- 9/18/2020
This was absolutely delicious. I double the crushed red pepper, and do everything else else as suggested. I usually don't make the croutons but did today, and wow! Used a garlic sourdough bread - amazing.
- jns7503
- San Francisco
- 11/28/2019
I made the soup without the croutons. It came together quickly. I made it with one 28-oz can of San Marzano tomatoes (and adjusted the cream accordingly) bc I didn't want to open two cans just to use part of the other. I found it a little bland and added a dollop of roasted vegetable Better than Bouillon. That did the trick. I'll definitely be making this on work nights in the future.
- spinsterella
- 9/26/2019
Excellent
- Anonymous
- New York, NY
- 4/17/2019
Easy and delicious. Also good cold.
- aldcorn
- Ontario Canada
- 3/29/2019
Damn good soup!
- xmatch
- Charleston, WV
- 3/26/2019
Excellent soup. The celery seed gives it a powerful celery flavor, which I'm fine with myself. I put less sugar in (probably around a teaspoon) since I don't like my tomato soup to be particularly sweet. Haven't tried the croutons yet--just served it with grilled cheese. Mmmm.
- leek
- Seattle
- 2/16/2019
Perfect quick warm, tomato soup. We've made it a few times and settled on our family modifications: chicken stock for water, less cream, sugar and salt (because of the stock), and no red pepper for the kids.
- Anonymous
- 11/23/2018
Absolutely wonderful soup. Made it as listed except that I used tomatoes from the garden as it is the end of the season with loads of tomatoes!
- plgnsmm
- Kent, WA
- 10/6/2018
Family favorite now! Didn't have celery seed, but the soup was still delicious. Served with the classic grilled cheese on the side.
- Anonymous
- Chicago
- 1/12/2018
Great tomato soup! Made it more than once The latest variation is with a 2 teaspoons of Ethiopian seasoning. It's all good.
- secretariat73
- Missoula, MT
- 1/7/2018
Excellent!
- airfoil
- 11/22/2017
Added fresh Basil... an easy and Excellent tomato soup!
- Anonymous
- Portland, OR
- 11/6/2017
Adapted this recipe a bit. I sautéed 1/2 onion and 1 clove of garlic until the onion was soft. Added 1 can of crushed San Marzano tomatoes, a little bit of whole milk, and about 1.5 cups of water. Brought to a boil, let it simmer, and then added some basil leaves and red pepper flakes. Served with grilled cheese. Delicious!!
- Anonymous
- 9/21/2017
FANTASTIC! My wife doesn't eat tomato soup and she loves this!
- 1bigbri
- 4/3/2017