The BEST tomato soup recipe! It’s rich, flavorful, and easy to make with basic ingredients. Just add a grilled cheese for a delicious, comforting meal!

This tomato soup recipe is a cold weather staple in our house. It couldn’t be simpler to make, and the ingredients are largely pantry basics that I always keep on hand.

But more importantly, this tomato soup is creamy, comforting, and full of rich flavor. The tomatoes make it tangy, balsamic vinegar adds sweetness, and red pepper flakes give it a warming kick of heat.

You could serve it on its own, topped with a swirl of olive oil, black pepper, and fresh basil leaves…or you could pair it with a grilled cheese sandwich. If you’re craving cozy comfort food as much as I’ve been lately, I definitely vote for the latter.

Key Ingredients in Tomato Soup

Here’s what you’ll need to make this homemade tomato soup recipe:

• Tomatoes, of course! Canned diced tomatoes, to be exact. You can also use canned whole peeled tomatoes and crush them with your hands before adding them to the soup. If you’d prefer to use fresh tomatoes, check out this roasted tomato basil soup recipe instead.
• Olive oil and butter – They create the soup’s rich base. To make this recipe dairy-free, feel free to use additional olive oil instead of the butter.
• Carrots, onion, and garlic – These aromatic veggies give the soup savory depth of flavor.
• Balsamic vinegar – It adds sweetness and tang.
• Vegetable broth – Use store-bought, or make your own. Water works here too!
• Full-fat coconut milk or heavy cream – Honestly, both are fantastic! They make the soup equally creamy. If you go the dairy-free route, I promise, you won’t taste the coconut one bit!
• Dried thyme – For warm, earthy flavor.
• Red pepper flakes – For heat.
• Fresh basil leaves – You can’t beat the combination of tomatoes and basil! I shower the basil over the soup to add bursts of fresh flavor.
• And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!

Find the complete recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Tomato Soup

This homemade tomato soup recipe is so simple to make! Here’s how it goes:

First, sauté the veggies. Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, and add the olive oil. Add the onion, carrots, minced garlic, and a pinch of salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the veggies soften, about 8 minutes.

Stir in the vinegar.

Next, add the remaining ingredients and simmer until the carrots are tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

Then, blend part of the soup. This step makes it sooo creamy! Scoop 4 cups of the soup out of the pot and set aside. Transfer the remaining soup to a blender, and blend until smooth. If you like, you could use an immersion blender for this step, though I prefer the smoother texture I get when I use my regular blender. Return the pureed soup to the pot, along with the 4 cups of chunky soup. Stir to combine.

Finally, season to taste and serve. That’s it!

What to Serve with Homemade Tomato Soup

On top: I love this soup with a swirl of olive oil, a drizzle of coconut milk or heavy cream, black pepper, and/or fresh basil on top. A little freshly grated Parmesan cheese is delicious too. I also like adding homemade croutons for crunch.

On the side: Enjoy the soup with a side of crusty bread or a grilled cheese sandwich. If you prefer something lighter, serve it with a simple green salad, my kale Caesar salad, or a classic Caesar salad.

Leftovers keep well for up to 4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. For longer storage, freeze the soup for up to 3 months!

More Favorite Soup Recipes

If you love this creamy tomato soup recipe, try one of these homemade soups next:

I’ve cooked scrambled eggs about a million times in my life, and I’m pretty particular about them. I like fluffy scrambled eggs topped with cheese. They must not be mushy, undercooked, or overcooked (the worst—and that smell!). I’m sharing my perfected technique with you today.

This recipe is designed for a stainless steel or cast iron skillet. If you’ve ever wondered how to cook scrambled eggs without a nonstick skillet, this post is for you. It can be done!

With this technique and some practice, you’ll make beautiful scrambled eggs with little mess. Even if you think you have your scrambled egg technique down pat, I think you might find some new tips here.

Scrambled Egg Tips

You’ll find the full recipe at the bottom of the post, plus a brief video below. I prefer to share foolproof recipes, but this one takes some practice. Even then, some days my eggs turn out better than others!

If you accidentally drop a bit of eggshell into your egg mixture:

Use the edge of a broken eggshell to scoop it out against the side of the bowl, or dampen your fingers with water to help fish them out.

Add a small amount of milk.

Or for even creamier eggs, use half-and-half or heavy cream. Adding dairy makes the eggs taste a little less eggy (in a good way), yields a more appealing pale yellow color, and, most importantly, offers a more pleasant and tender texture.

Plus a pinch of salt.

Salt helps tenderize the eggs. Add it as early as you can and then let the egg mixture hang out while you preheat the pan for wonderfully tender eggs.

Whisk well.

I love my small whisk for the job—it works much better than a fork. Whisk until the eggs are uniformly yellow to avoid stringy white bits in the finished result.

Let the eggs rest for a few minutes before cooking.

If you have time, let the egg mixture warm to room temperature before cooking, which helps reduce sticking.

Preheat the pan until it’s just the right temperature.

This is the key to preventing your eggs from sticking to the skillet. Do not hurry this one, and try to stay focused on the stovetop. Check out my photos and the video below for visuals.

Your skillet is hot enough when you can flick a few drops of water at an angle onto the pan and they dance or hop across the surface and then evaporate almost immediately.

Your pan is not hot enough if the drops splatter and bubble. If the butter browns immediately, the pan is too hot—you’ll need to let the pan cool and start over.

Watch How to Make Scrambled Eggs

How to Season Scrambled Eggs

I love to incorporate chopped chives when they’re growing in my garden. In fact, I often grow them with scrambled eggs in mind! They’re such a simple addition and infuse the eggs with a lovely, subtle allium flavor.

Generally, I recommend adding seasonings to scrambled eggs once they’re done cooking. If you try to cook vegetables and then add eggs to the skillet, you’ll often miss the ideal temperature and have trouble with the eggs sticking to the skillet. (The residual oil and bits of veggies stuck to the pan can also turn the eggs a strange color.)

Transfer the scrambled eggs to a plate to prevent overcooking, then fold in ingredients like sautéed or roasted vegetables and grated cheese. I love to add a small handful of crumbled tortilla chips, like you’ll see in my migas. You might also like a drizzle of sauce, like salsa, hot sauce, or a dollop of sour cream.

The best cheese for scrambled eggs:

You can’t go wrong, honestly. Grated cheddar cheese, Parmesan or Monterey Jack offer bold, cheesy flavors. I love to stir crumbled goat cheese or feta into warm scrambled eggs, which melt somewhat and make the eggs extra creamy.

Suggested Equipment

All-Clad D3 12-inch stainless steel frying pan or Lodge 12-inch cast iron skillet: You need a large skillet for cooking eggs. The All-Clad skillet is a splurge, but I’ve bought similar, less expensive skillets before, and they warped over high heat. Both of these skillets will last your lifetime with proper care.

OXO 9-inch whisk: I like to crack eggs into a glass liquid measuring cup and whisk them with this small whisk, which doesn’t flop over the side.

OXO silicone spatula: I particularly enjoy the large red spatula because the angular edge helps get underneath the eggs.

Bamboo pot scrapers: Use your silicone spatula or a bamboo scraper to remove any remaining bits of egg from the skillet while it’s still warm.

A note on nonstick skillets: I don’t recommend using a nonstick skillet for this recipe because warming an empty nonstick skillet to this degree can damage the surface and release harmful fumes if it’s made with Teflon. If you can make perfectly scrambled eggs without one, why bother with a pan that falls apart and has to be replaced every year?

More Recipes Featuring Scrambled Eggs

Please let me know how your eggs turn out in the comments! I hope this technique works like a charm for you.

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