Creamy Tomato Soup with Buttery Croutons
Servings 6
Equipment
- Large skillet
- Large Dutch oven
- Immersion Blender or Blender
- Fine Sieve
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter, divided
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 4 slices white country bread, crusts trimmed, bread cut into ¾ inch cubes
- Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
- Garlic powder, to taste
- 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 3 large garlic cloves, smashed
- ½-1 tbsp white sugar, to taste
- ¼-½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
- ¼ tsp celery seed
- ⅛ tsp dried dill
- ⅛ tsp dried oregano
- ⅛ tsp dried basil
- 42 oz canned whole tomatoes **I used 1 (28 oz can) and 1 (14 oz can)
- 1 cup vegetable broth **You can also use chicken broth
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Make the buttery croutons by heating 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the diced bread and toss to coat evenly in the butter and oil. Season with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, and garlic powder, to taste; toss to coat evenly. Reduce the heat to low and cook the bread, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes, or until crispy and golden brown. Remove from the heat and set aside until needed.
- Make the soup while the croutons are cooking by heating the remaining butter and olive oil to a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic slivers then season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, and cook, stirring often, for 7-10 minutes, until very softened.
- Add the crushed red pepper flakes, celery seed, dried dill, dried oregano, and dried basil then cook, stirring often, for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes and their juices along with the broth, heavy cream, sugar, sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper, to taste; bring to a boil while breaking up the tomatoes with the back of your spoon. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30-40 minutes.
- Blend the soup with an immersion blender until smooth or blend the soup in batches in a blender. Taste and season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, if needed. Side Note: If you want a very thin soup, pour the well-blended soup through a fine sieve to strain out any pulp.
- Ladle into bowls and serve with the buttery croutons on the side. Enjoy.