This creamy tomato soup recipe is comfort food at its best! It tastes rich, but it's light and healthy, made with blended chickpeas instead of heavy cream.
I’d say yes to a bowl of this creamy tomato soup every day in the wintertime! It’s exactly the sort of comforting dish I crave on cold, gray days, because it’s wholesome, yet fun. The soup itself is pretty darn healthy, made without any heavy cream or butter. In fact, it’s totally vegan! Still, it has a satisfying creamy texture and rich taste. Wholesome: check.
The fun part of this creamy tomato soup is actually the topping. I load it up with toasty vegan grilled cheese croutons! They add a nice crunch to the creamy soup, and they let you enjoy the classic grilled cheese + tomato soup combo all in one. SO fun, right? Let’s cook!
Creamy Tomato Soup Recipe Ingredients
Because it’s winter, I intended to make this soup using only canned tomatoes, but at the store, I saw some organic fresh tomatoes that looked too good to pass up. I decided to roast them and toss them into the soup in addition to the canned tomatoes. Then, I rounded it out with these key ingredients:
- Roasted onion and garlic add an irresistible, caramelized depth of flavor.
- Chickpeas are the secret ingredient! They make this vegan tomato soup lusciously creamy without any dairy.
- Balsamic vinegar makes it deliciously tangy.
- Fresh thyme adds a lovely herbal note. A handful of fresh basil would be great here too!
- Maple syrup balances the acidic balsamic and tomatoes.
- Extra-virgin olive oil adds richness.
- And a dash of red pepper flakes spices it up.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Creamy Tomato Soup
I like to think of this homemade tomato soup recipe in two easy steps: 1. Roast and 2. Blend.
Here’s how it goes:
- Preheat the oven to 450° and roast the garlic, onion, and fresh tomatoes until tender and browned, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Transfer the roasted veggies to a blender and add the other ingredients.
- Blend to creamy perfection!
- Top with the grilled cheese croutons, if using, and enjoy!
Homemade Tomato Soup Serving Suggestions
This creamy tomato soup is delicious on its own, but the grilled cheese croutons really take it over the top. Of course, regular croutons would be a yummy topping too.
Not in the mood for croutons? That’s ok! Pair this soup with a regular grilled cheese sandwich, avocado toast, homemade focaccia, or crusty bread. I also like it with a salad on the side. This kale salad, this broccoli salad, a Caesar salad, or a chopped salad would all be good choices.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
If you love this creamy tomato soup, try one of these homemade soup recipes next:
- Many-Veggie Vegetable Soup
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Carrot Ginger Soup
- Best Lentil Soup
- Black Bean Soup
- Pumpkin Soup
- Vegan Broccoli Soup
- Or any of these 30 Best Soup Recipes!
For 85 more vegan recipes, check out this post!
Creamy Tomato Soup
Ingredients
- 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
- 4 medium fresh tomatoes* (see note)
- 1 small yellow onion, sliced into quarters
- 1 (14-oz) can diced tomatoes
- 1/3 cup cooked chickpeas
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- ½ teaspoon maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Heaping ½ teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
for the croutons: (optional)
- 8 slices SimplyNature 7 Grain Bread
- heaping ½ cup Earth Grown Vegan Mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Wrap the garlic cloves in a piece of foil and place it on the baking sheet along with the whole tomatoes and the onion wedges. Drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper and roast for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tomatoes and onions are well browned. Peel the garlic and transfer the roasted vegetables to a blender.
- Reduce the oven heat to 400° F and line the baking sheet with a fresh sheet of parchment paper.
- To the blender, add the canned tomatoes, garbanzo beans, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, thyme leaves, 1 tablespoon olive oil, red pepper flakes, ½ teaspoon sea salt, and freshly ground pepper and blend until creamy (a Vitamix is ideal here. If using a regular blender, just blend longer!). Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. At this stage, the soup should still be hot. If not, pour it into a pot to reheat it.
- Make the croutons: Sprinkle 4 slices of the bread with a thin layer of cheese. Top with the remaining bread slices to make sandwiches and drizzle the outsides of the bread with olive oil. Bake until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden brown, about 8 minutes. Let cool completely before slicing into croutons so that the cheese doesn’t ooze out when you cut it.
- Serve the soup with the croutons (some in the soup, some on the side) and additional fresh thyme, red pepper flakes, and chickpeas, if desired.
Notes
Special thanks to ALDI for partnering on this post. Click here to find a store near you!
This is my new favorite tomato soup. Delicious!
I’m so happy to hear!
I tried this and it didn’t come out creamy, it was very lumpy and felt more of a tomato purée and not a soup. Any tips for making it creamy and not chunky?
Hi Sarah, it could depend on your blender – I’d try just blending longer.
Isn’t putting hot soups or any hot food in a blender bad for the blender as it could damage it or worse?
Hi Daniela, in this case, a few of the ingredients (canned tomatoes, chickpeas, etc) are at room temp, so it’s not a scalding soup. If you are concerned about blending warm foods, you could let the vegetables cool before blending. If the soup isn’t hot enough, you could heat it up on the stove afterward. Hope that helps!
Do you think this would freeze well? I have tons of fresh tomatoes and want to freeze a batch for a cool fall day.
yep! It’s great frozen.
Yep! It’ll freeze great.
This was very good! The texture of the soup was light, which is a plus. It was quick and easy to make. Handy utilization of chickpeas.
This soup is beyond delicious! I love how healthy it is with no cream or dairy and the addition of chick peas is amazing! I cannot believe how easy it is to make. It is now one of my favorite soups. Thank you so much for this recipe 🙂
I’m glad it’s a favorite!
This got an “excellent” rating from my husband. That rarely happens. I didn’t have fresh thyme, so used a bit of dried thyme. Also added fresh basil and parsley, because that’s what I had. I used a large onion and 5green garlic cloves and blended it in the food processor, which left it not smooth,, but just fine. I threw in some extra whole chick peas and just made a grilled cheese sandwich to have with. We’re not vegan, so I used jarlsburg cheese. It was wonderful. Thanks!
Do not cook your tomatoes, onions, and garlic with olive oil at 450 degrees. The smoke point for the oil is 350 degrees. Reduce the heat and cook for longer!
hello I just wanted to ask if you are supposed to peal the tomatoes before putting them in the oven?
Hi Amanda, no, it’s not necessary.
I’m surprised I like this. I’m not a fan of tomato soup and not vegan or vegetarian. Thank you.
This was delicious!! We had a bumper harvest of homegrown tomatoes this year so this was a perfect way to use some of them. I added a little more of the maple syrup and chilli and there was a perfect sweet-savoury-spicy combination. It had a really strong tomato flavour, and overall my family really enjoyed it! Thanks for the great recipe.
Do I need chickpeas
hello! Ironically I was able to get my hands on plenty of fresh tomatoes, but no canned. Do you have any recommendations on adapting to use entirely fresh tomatoes? I have plenty 🙂 Thank you!
Hi Lily, try doubling the fresh tomatoes, and then once the soup is blended, you might have to season it a little bit more since canned tomatoes have a more concentrated tangy flavor. Aside from salt and pepper, add more balsamic if it’s bland and needs some pop… or if it’s too tart, add a pinch of sugar. I hope that helps!
Can you make this recipe with grape tomatoes instead?
I just made this and am sitting in front of it. It is SO good, I can’t believe I actually did this myself (I am a pretty mediocre cook). This recipe is 10/10!
Turned out overwhelmingly acidic! Tad too sweet. Starting with a teaspoon of balsamic next time and no maple syrup, only adding at the end if needed.
Hi Lindsay, thanks for the feedback. If you wanted to tone down this batch, you could try blending in more chickpeas, more olive oil, and a few extra pinches of salt and pepper (depending on it’s current salt level), for balance. If you simmer it for a little bit, the balsamic taste will cook out some.
So good! And easy! I had some leftover giant white beans in tomato sauce so i used that instead of chickpeas.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Delicious! The soup alone is truly an under 30 minute recipe. I paired this with Love and Lemons’ Tomato, Basil, and Artichoke Picnic Sandwich.
And I’m so glad you loved the soup along with it!
This recipe seriously makes THE most delicious tomato soup ever!! And it’s so so easy. I love that I have all of these ingredients in my kitchen and can easily make. Highly recommend trying!!
Hi!! Would an immersion blender work here?
Yep! It won’t be as smooth as using a high speed blender, but it’ll be delicious nonetheless 🙂