Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

This creamy and healthy roasted red pepper tomato soup recipe from scratch is better than any store-bought soup. Ready in minutes & kids love it! Serve with fresh homemade artisan bread and top with Parmesan cheese or Mediterranean grilled cheese.

Sometimes the best recipes are born by accident.

Mexi-lentil macaroni was created because I needed dinner and didn’t have much in the pantry. 90-minute man bread was born because we needed bread, we were short on time and my husband didn’t want to follow a recipe.

Roasted red pepper tomato soup can be attributed to finding a wrinkly red pepper that was originally intended for another meal but wasn’t used. Instead of throwing it away, I put it in my family’s favorite soup.

Having an alternate purpose for things in the fridge is what I call Plan B, and I teach this concept in-depth in my course Grocery Budget Bootcamp.

Tomato Soup

My tomato soup recipe is super easy. Canned tomatoes, homemade chicken stock, fresh or dried basil, and cream all blended up inside the pot with the oh-so-handy immersion blender until it’s ultra-smooth and delicious. One pot to clean and you’re done.

Paired with a grilled cheese sandwich on whole-wheat bread and it’s one of my favorite childhood staple meals, only made with real food.

This tomato soup recipe is super easy too, but it’s a bit more dressed up. I make if we were having company over for dinner, which I’ve done since we’ve had EIGHT different families visit us in the past 3 months alone.

I made crusty no-knead artisan bread, but Mediterranean grilled cheese would be REALLY good too!

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

Besides the fact that this soup is a fan favorite, you have tons of options and flexibility in this recipe, depending on what you’re looking for…

• Dairy-free – omit the milk (my preferred option!) or sub with almond milk
• Vegan – substitute vegetable stock for chicken stock, olive oil for butter
• Gluten-free – NOTHING! This recipe is naturally gluten-free.
• Tomatoes – sub-fresh tomatoes from the garden if you have them!

Ingredients for Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

A simple list of delicious wholesome ingredients:

• Red bell pepper
• Butter
• Onion, chopped
• Garlic cloves, chopped
• Italian-style tomatoes, canned (whole or even diced tomatoes)
• Homemade chicken broth (read my method here)
• Fresh basil
• Half & half
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste (ground black pepper is ok, too)
• Parmesan cheese, to taste

Note: Some people like to use heavy cream, but I prefer the half & half to make it just a little lighter.

Psst! If you’re going to add salt, I highly recommend Ava Jane’s Kitchen. You may think all salt is created equal, but unfortunately, 90% of the salt produced around the world contains microplastics (gross, right?). Ava Jane’s Kitchen is an exception. Their salt is 100% microplastic free, and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a bag for just 1¢!! (Get your penny bag of salt on this page.)

Instructions for Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

Step 1. Roast a red bell pepper on broil or over the oven grate.

Step 2. Melt butter and add onions; cook until translucent.

Step 3. Add garlic and cook, until aromatic.

Step 4. Add tomatoes, stock, and bell pepper and bring to a boil, and stir occasionally. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook.

Step 5. Add basil. Puree with an immersion blender until smooth.

Step 6. Turn off the heat and add cream while stirring.

Step 7. Serve with a pinch of salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese to taste.

FAQs

Do I Have to Roast the Red Pepper for Red Pepper Tomato Soup?

Yes! Roasting sounds a bit fancy, but it means you’re going to char (a.k.a. burn) the pepper first – like in the picture above. Super easy and great for those who tend to burn things anyway!

You can do this in a few different ways:

• In the oven, directly on the grate under the broiler.
• On top of the gas stove, holding with a pair of long, stainless steel tongs.
• On the grill, if you’re already grilling something else that week.

Almost every roasted pepper recipe I’ve come across has you peel the charred skin off the pepper before using it. I’ve made this soup both by peeling the skin and leaving it on and the only difference was the teeny tiny flecks of black in the soup.

But if someone asks (a.k.a. the picky kid or picky spouse), those flecks can be pepper… or basil… if you catch my drift.

Save Time

Summer is near and I’m all about NOT heating up the kitchen whenever possible. That means…

• Roasting the pepper when we’re already making pizza on Friday nights.
• Sticking a pepper on the grill when we’re making burgers.
• Roasting TWO peppers instead of one to make an extra batch of soup for the freeze and eliminating cooking another meal altogether.

You MUST roast the pepper, but work smarter.

More Easy Soup Recipes

• Kung Fu Panda Soup
• Red Lentil Vegetable Soup
• Homemade Cream of Celery Soup
• Instant Pot Chicken Detox Soup
• Zuppa Toscana Soup
• Homemade Tortilla Soup
• Easy Minestrone Soup
• Instant Pot White Bean Soup With Sausage and Kale