Crock Pot Tomato Soup
Mmm who doesn’t love tomato soup!? Warm, light, and savory, it’s always sure to please. And with a grilled cheese… pretty sure that’s heaven. This version of tomato soup is more of a savory and slightly spicy soup, rather than a creamy sweet one. You could easily make it sweet and creamy by substituting cream in for chicken broth, but I usually opt for things that are on the lighter side, so I like mine with broth. With a dash of smoked paprika and red pepper flakes, a basic tomato soup gets a makeover with a kick!
The point of using a Crock Pot is to make things both easy and delicious. You can get up in the morning, throw all the ingredients in a pot, and come home to yumminess. This is about 99% percent true for this recipe. The 1% of work comes in at the beginning… you need to saute up the onions and garlic for a couple minutes first. This is no difficult task though- just about five minutes of cooking and then you pour it into the Crock Pot to slow cook. Easy peasy.
Once that’s done, let the pot do it’s magic and come home to this…
And even better, if you don’t get it together to make everything before you head off to work in the morning, this soup only takes 4 hours on low, so you can come home, then throw it together, and still eat dinner in a timely manner- of course this depends on when you get home, but nice to know it’s a possibility 
INGREDIENTS
2 lbs tomatoes (chopped and peeled) or a 28 oz can diced tomatoes (unseasoned, with juice)
2 cups chopped onion (1/2 large onion or 1 small one)
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tbsp minced garlic- 2 cloves
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes (for a spicy little kick)
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 tbsp light brown sugar (or honey)
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
fresh basil leaves and Greek yogurt (or sour cream), for garnish (omit for dairy-free version)
*You’ll need an immersion blender or food processor/blender of sorts to blend soup
DIRECTIONS
Roughly chop onion and toss in a large pan with some olive oil over medium heat
Sprinkle with salt and pepper, stir, and let cook for a few minutes
Meanwhile, mince garlic…
Add garlic to onions
Let cook for a couple of minutes, until softened and fragrant
Then add the tomatoes (with their juices) to the pan
This is why the pan should be large
Add smoked paprika and red pepper flakes- 1/8 tsp of red pepper flakes makes it
kind of spicy- if you don’t want a lightly spicy soup, then add less
Add remaining herbs and spices…
And brown sugar
Stir, taste, and adjust as wanted- remember that the
flavors will become stronger while slow cooking!
Add to Crock Pot
Add chicken broth and bay leaves
Set on low for about 4 hours (if needed, you can cook longer)
When it’s done, stir and taste for flavors- depending on your personal preferences,
you may want to add salt etc.
Remove bay leaves
Either use an immersion blender or pour soup into a blender and blend until smooth
The level of chunkiness is up to you- some people like their soups totally smooth, others like some texture… I left some tomato chunks in there because I like the texture
Voila… we have soup!
Top with Greek yogurt, fresh basil, and if you have them, little cherry tomatoes…
Serve with grilled cheese, bread, or eat just as is!
Enjoy!!
