Easy Tomato Soup: Make it from Leftover Pasta Sauce
Add water and seasonings to Pasta sauce and bring to a boil. Add a milk-cornstarch slurry, cook with stirring until smooth and velvety. Stir in butter, dried parsley, dried chives and shredded cheddar. Serve steaming hot, accompanied by cheesy croutons, a simple salad and/or sandwich. Enjoy!
Equipment
- Medium heavy bottom saucepan (2-3 qt/L)
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Pasta Sauce - Basic Marinara-style home-made or store-bought; see link in Recipe Notes for home-made
- 2 cups Water
- 1/2 tsp Fennel powder
- 1/2 tsp Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Salt adjust as per taste preference
- 1/4 tsp Black pepper - freshly cracked/ground adjust as per taste preference
- 1/4 tsp Guajillo Chile (or New Mexico Chile) - ground coarsely ground; if not available, use sweet Paprika / ground Kashmiri Mirchi / ground Byadgi Mirchi, or other mildly spicy red chilli peppers ( ground)
Make a thickening slurry
- 1/3 cup Milk - whole milk preferred for vegan- use your preferred plant-based milk
- 1 tbsp Cornstarch if not available, OK to use tapioca starch
Garnish - stir in just before serving soup
- 1 tsp Dried parsley
- 2 tsp Dried Chives
- 1 tsp Butter
- 2 tbsp Cheddar cheese - shredded extra-sharp preferred
On the side - optional
- 1/2 cup Croutons - Cheesy for home-made croutons, see link in Recipe Notes
- 2 tbsp Cheddar cheese - shredded extra-sharp preferred; if not available, use another cheese that melts smoothly without becoming stringy.
- 1 tbsp Hot sauce to add an extra kick, if you like it hot: Sambal Oelek, fresh red chili paste, Sriracha, etc.
- 1/4 cup Fresh Parsley - chopped for garnish
- 1/4 cup Fresh green onions- sliced for garnish
Instructions
- I like to use coarsely ground Guajillo Chile peppers for their color and flavor. Other options: Any mildly spicy, deep red dried pepper Some varieties: ground New Mexico Chile, Paprika + a pinch of ground cayenne, ground Kashmiri Mirchi, ground Byadgi Mirchi, etc.
- Transfer the pasta sauce to a medium saucepan. Add water, salt, sugar, fennel powder and Guajillo Chile powder (or other mildly spicy red pepper, ground)
- Bring to a boil, then simmer 2-3 min - see how the color of the broth changes quite dramatically!
- Warm the milk in the microwave for 15-20 seconds till lukewarm.Add the cornstarch and stir well to make a smooth slurry.
- Turn the heat off under the simmering tomato broth. Quickly stir in the milk-cornstarch slurry. Keep stirring well to mix evenly and prevent lumps.
- Turn the heat on again… with the heat on the low setting, keep stirring continuously to prevent lumps and/or sticking to (or burning) at the bottom of the pan.Within minutes, you will see the soup become thicker, and start to look a bit glossy too. The color will lighten and become a creamy orange (rather than the red shade it was before adding the milk-cornstarch slurry)Once it boils gently for about a minute or so, taste-test a tiny bit (in a spoon) - Careful! it's HOT! Blow on it a little to cool it down first!) - make sure the corn starch is fully cooked - it should not have a 'raw' taste!The whole process should take about 3-4 minutes.
- Once the corn starch has cooked properly, the soup will be thicker and will look look glossy and velvety smooth.Turn the heat off, and add the dried parsley and dried chives. Stir to mix.
- Add the butter and stir it in.
- Add the shredded cheddar cheese and stir it in.
- That's it! The soup is ready to serve!
- Would you like some crunchy, savory and cheesy croutons to top your soup with? if you want to make them at home, check Recipe Notes for the link to a simple recipe I posted a while ago - to make them from stale, leftover Bollillo rolls! Note: Be aware that these are rather addicting!
- Set out a simple salad and maybe fresh bread .... And if you like, also set out extra shredded cheddar cheese, fresh copped parsley, sliced green onions, hot sauce, etc.SO.... Soup, anyone?Enjoy!
Notes
No Guajillo Pepper?
No worries... Use another variety of ground, mildly spicy, deep- red peppers that is available where you live. Some good options: ground New Mexico Chile, Paprika + apinch of ground Cayenne, ground Kashmiri Mirchi, ground Byadgi Mirchi, etc.Home-made Cheesy Croutons:
Want to make some home-made crunchy, savory, cheesy croutons? Try this super easy recipe - it's a great way to use up leftover, slightly stale Bollillo rolls... https://theculinaryheart.com/make-parmesan-pepper-croutons-from-bolillo-rolls Just so you know... These croutons are quite addicting! You might start to polish off a good number as you're transferring them to a nice, air-tight jar!Storing Leftovers:
Transfer leftover soup to a glass/ceramic lidded container. In Refrigerator:- Use within 2-3 days
- Re-heat on the stove-top or in the microwave till heated through. Stir well and be sure to let it come to a boil before serving.
- Use within 3-4 weeks, may be good for longer
- Thaw to room temp first -
- remove lid and set on he counter for about 30 min
- heat at 30% power in the microwave (defrost setting) for a few min, checking frequently, until thawed.
- Re-heat on the stove-top (in a saucepan), or in the microwave till heated through. Stir well and be sure to let it come to a boil before serving
- Thaw to room temp first -
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupCalories: 58kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 3gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.04gCholesterol: 6mgSodium: 409mgPotassium: 257mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 2037IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 75mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!