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Tomato Bisque Soup

There is nothing more soul-warming on a cold fall/winter day than a creamy tomato soup. This recipe is just as delicious as it is easy. It also doesn't require a lot of cleanup which – let's be honest is super important. Read on for some helpful tips and tricks to give you (what I think) is the best tomato soup ever.

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Course Soup

Equipment

Blender or An Immersion Blender

Ingredients

1 chopped yellow onion
2 chopped stalks of celery
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 knob of butter
olive oil
1 – 1½ boxes of chicken stock
1 can whole peeled tomatoes preferably san marzano
basil, crushed red pepper, oregano, black pepper, salt season to taste
3 tbsp white long grain rice
1-2 tsp white sugar
½ cup heavy cream

Instructions

Cut your veggies first (celery, onion, and smash garlic)
In a pot, add olive oil and the butter and let them combine together by stirring.
Once melted, add in celery and onion and let sauté until soft.
Toss in whole crushed garlic cloves so they can cook down. Do not burn the garlic!
Add a whole box of chicken stock and bring to a simmer. I personally, would have added more because I would of liked my soup a bit more liquidy, I noticed this after the fact so read the note if needed.
Crush your whole peeled tomatoes by hand while your chicken stock is coming to a simmer. Then add the tomatoes in and stir.
Add seasonings to taste. I used basil, oregano, crushed red pepper, and a dash of paprika along with salt and pepper.
On medium high, bring to a simmer. When you see those bubbles bubbling, add the rice. Reduce the heat to about medium low to keep a steady simmer. Stir continuously as the rice will stick I you don't.
Skim fat as needed. When the veggies are soft and the rice is cooked, roughly 40 minutes, reduce heat to low and taste for the sweetness of the tomatoes. Depending on how sweet they are, add 1-2 tsp of sugar.
Blend everything using an immersion blender off of the heat. Be CAREFUL!
Once you get the consistency you like, add heavy cream.
Plate and serve!

Video

Notes

I use an olive oil for sautéing from Filippo Berrio.
As far as seasonings go, you can use what you prefer, if you want to add more or less its all dependent on your flavor profile.
You do not have to chop your veggies to small as they will soften and be blended.
You can add more chicken stock to your preference depending on how liquid versus creamy you like it.
I prefer San Marzano Tomatoes but you can also use any type of canned tomatoes and any style (diced, chopped, or whole peeled).
Please continuously stir. I left it alone and some of my rice stuck on the bottom.
You could always use a blender, but you have to wait till it cools and um, its messier in my opinion.
Tomato soup needs grill cheese or some kind of toasty. Add croutons if you don’t want to make a grilled cheese.

Keyword bisque, Soup, tomato

Soup for the Soul

A long time ago, I thought pastina and minestrone were the only soup that existed. As an adult, I began to experiment with recipes and I found a recipe for soup from Laura Vitale. I’ve made her version a couple of times and it is always a good one. However, recently I discovered Chef John’s version and I have preferred his. After a few tweaks here and there, I found a tomato bisque soup that worked best for me, and I tried my best to describe it here for you.

So, all my life I have used Extra Virgin Olive Oil for almost EVERYTHING. Even frying – I know – scary. But, with age comes wisdom! I have now learned that frying is for high temperature oils like canola or avocado. Sometimes, I do not want to fry , all I want to do is sauté and get that olive oil flavor. In comes the Filippo Berrio Olive Oil! It literally tells you on the cover “for sauteeing and grilling”. My old and trusted green bottle would say “marinating and salads” and I never even noticed! So, if you are in search for a good sauteeing oil and a hint of that olive oil flavor, I highly recommend the Filippo Berrio.

Personal Preferences!

A couple of things I will note, this is a creamy and thick soup. Its a tomato BISQUE after all. So, if your like me and texture is very important for you, learn the consistency you like. If you want it less thick, add more stock. Also, don’t just add the stock straight from the box if you are adding more. Heat it up a bit on another burner. You could use any type of canned tomatoes – chopped, diced, or whole peeled. I prefer the rustic feel of it all when I crush them myself. Also, a lot of canned tomatoes are acidic and I have found that the San Marzano tomatoes are some of the freshest and least acidic tasting that I have come across. I usually use the Cento brand and you already know I love their tomato paste.

Lastly, because this is like a one pot soup, I preferred to use an immersion blender, which took a lot longer than you would if you just used a regular blender. But in my opinion, having to wait for it to cool down a bit, pouring it into the blender, then having to clean said blender, well, all of that seemed like way too much for me. The rice is added to create a creamy and starchy texture, something that Chef John really taught me and I have loved ever since. It also allows for a little less need for a lot of heavy cream – which is heavy.

Cheese Toasties

Although the recipe is not included in here, the grilled cheese sandwich for me is a must-have with tomato soup. You can easily omit this, but because, like aforementioned, the soup is thick and creamy, it is made for dipping! You can just as easily add come store-bought croutons if you rather not make a quick toasty. Either way, tomato soup is simply one of those soups that warms your insides and makes you feel cozy and warm. I hope that you give it a try and please let me know what you think!