Roasted Tomato and Pumpkin Soup with Homemade Croutons
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour, 40 minutes | Serves: 6 – 8
It’s fall! The leaves are beginning to turn and fall a little at a time. I love it! Cozy soups, comfy sweaters, soft blankets, and evenings when you can sleep with the windows open. Football season is starting. Sunday afternoon drives to look at the beautiful landscapes in our area will be spontaneous. Who’s with me?
I found a couple of cans of pumpkin purée that I purchased last fall… (I know!) A fun and yummy soup was calling my name.
This recipe uses a can of pumpkin purée, but you are welcome to roast a pumpkin, scoop out the flesh, and purée as a substitute.
A couple of decades ago, I made a truly homemade/made from scratch pumpkin pie only to be incredibly disappointed that it tasted exactly like a pumpkin pie made with canned, store-bought purée. Bummer. That was a lot of work with high expectations, only to be let down. That’s the only “from scratch” pumpkin pie I’ve ever made.
There are many tomato soups online. There are many pumpkin soups online. There are some tomato and pumpkin soup recipes online. But, let’s add some flair.. some roasted vegetables for depth of flavor. Not just roasted tomatoes, but a mirepoix of carrots, celery, and onions lightly caramelized.
I have also included a crouton recipe. It is a little bit extra work, but here, going the extra mile is worth it. My first batch of croutons were eaten up by my son and his girlfriend straight out of the bag, but that allowed me to experiment with the next batch. Win-win!
Here’s the most important tip for this recipe. Taste the pumpkin before adding it to your soup. I dumped an entire can into a pot of chipotle-pumpkin soup, and the soup was gritty! Talk about a nightmare. The Libby brand that had never failed me before, was gritty and ruined my dish. Talk about learning the hard way. Pumpkins/squash are grown in sandy soil, so I guess it was inevitable that some dirt and grime would get through quality control at some point. I do still buy Libby’s pumpkin products, but it’s ingrained in my brain to taste-test first. I highly encourage you to do the same.
I’ve also learned some brands are more “watery” than others. That’s important in making scones or biscuits, but for this soup, it’s perfectly fine.
Serving suggestion: My son’s girlfriend topped hers with sour cream and loved it! I purchased a bottle of sun-dried tomato olive oil to drizzle over my warm soup. Wow! It changed the flavor quite a bit, but it was a wonderful bowl of soup.
My recipe does not use the entire 15-ounce can of pumpkin purée because I want the tomato flavors to be dominant and the pumpkin an undertone. You will have about ½ cup of pumpkin purée leftover in the can. If you already have an idea about how to utilize it, go for it! If not, here’s a link to some pretty-yummy Pumpkin Spice Overnight Oats with PS Granola! Yumm-O! But if you’d rather use the entire can of pumpkin purée, go ahead, but be sure to adjust seasonings and liquids.
Enjoy!
Roasted Tomato and Pumpkin Soup with Homemade Croutons
Ingredients
Soup:
- 1 onion, sliced into wedges
- 2 celery ribs, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, chopped, or cut into half moons if very thick
- 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, or olive oil, divided
- kosher salt, to taste
- freshly-cracked black pepper, or ground white pepper, to taste
- 2 pounds Roma tomatoes, quartered, see Notes
- 1 pound cherry tomatoes, or cocktail tomatoes
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced or grated on a zester/Microplane, or pushed through a garlic press
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika, sweet or hot, or to taste
- 3 - 4 cups unsalted or low-sodium vegetable stock, or chicken stock
- 1 1/4 cups pumpkin purée, NOT pie mix
- 1/2 - 3/4 cup heavy cream, to taste
- 1 - 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato-infused oil, optional
- Croutons, for serving, optional, recipe below
Croutons:
- 12 ounces (about 4 cups) French or Italian loaf (a day or 2 old(, cut into 3/4" - 1" cubes
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon roasted garlic powder, or garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika, not smoked
- 2 - 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
Soup:
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy cleanup.
- Scatter the onion, celery, and carrots on the baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste. Toss the veggies to coat them in the oil and seasonings.
- Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until there is some caramelization on the veggies. Remove the pan from the oven and scatter the tomatoes (Roma and cherry) on the pan. Add 1 tablespoon of oil and season the tomatoes with salt and pepper. Bake for another 30 to 40 minutes or until some caramelization is on the tomatoes and the carrots are very tender.
- Remove from the oven to cool. (Puréeing hot vegetables in a blender can be dangerous. Allow them to cool while you continue the recipe.)
- In a Dutch oven or stockpot, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-low heat. Once hot, add the garlic and stir constantly for about 20 seconds, being careful not to burn the garlic.
- Add the tomato paste and paprika. Stir and cook for about 1 minute. Turn off the heat while you blend the tomatoes.
- Scrape the cooled vegetables into a blender. Add 1 cup of the stock. Purée the mixture until smooth and flowing well in the blender. (Or you may use an immersion blender after the extra stock and pumpkin purée has been added to the Dutch oven.)
- Pour all the puréed veggies into the Dutch oven. Add the remaining 2 to 3 cups of stock (depending on desired consistency) and the pumpkin purée. Stir thoroughly and heat through. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Turn off the heat and allow the flavors to marry.
- Add ½ cup of the heavy cream and gently stir, heating through. Do not boil.
- You may add more heavy cream if more richness is desired. You may add more stock for a thinner consistency. As always, adjust seasonings as needed.
Croutons:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. If desired, line the baking sheet with foil or parchment paper for easy clean up; no need to spray with non-stick products like Pam.
- Place all seasonings in a small bowl and combine well.
- Place the cubed bread into a large bowl and sprinkle half of the herbs over and toss. Add the remaining half of the herbs and toss again.
- Drizzle a couple of tablespoons of the oil evenly over the bread cubes. Toss well, trying to disperse the ingredients as well as possible. Drizzle a couple more tablespoons of oil over the bread and toss again. Drizzle the last of the oil and toss once more. Taste for seasoning, especially salt, and add more if desired.
- Pour the bread cubes onto the baking sheet and space evenly.
- (If you are using a dense loaf, you may need more baking time versus a lighter Italian loaf. Also, larger cubes will take slightly longer baking time.)
- Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, using a spatula, gently toss the croutons. Place the pan back into the oven for another 7-10 minutes, depending on the heat of your oven.
- Remove one crouton from the pan, allow it to cool and taste. I like mine just ever so slightly soft in the center; mine were perfect at 20 minutes. If you prefer more browning and crispiness on the inside, bake for another 4 to 5 minutes and check again.
- Allow to completely cool on the baking sheet, then store in an airtight container. Store the croutons for up to a week.
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