I know it’s summertime–not exactly the time of year that we think about cooking up a big pot of soup, much less eating it. But really, yesterday was a rainy ol’ day in the hills of Tennessee, and who can resist a comforting bowl of soup and a book when you hear thunder outside?
And then, there are vegan grilled cheese sandwiches. Whaaaaaat??
I can taste it now–crunchy, ooey gooey grilled cheese sandwiches dipped in warm, creamy tomato soup and stuffed in my mouth faster than a fighter jet on a mission.
Okay, so that picture didn’t really do justice to the grilled cheese sandwiches because, well, the grilled cheese post is for another day soon–hopefully tomorrow–depending on if I can get out of this fog called pregnancy brain and type up another post {insert yawn}.
I don’t remember feeling this way with my first, but seriously. At 35 weeks pregnant with bebe #2, the exhaustion and pregnancy brain are no joke. I feel like I could sleep for a week and still be tired. And, because sleeping for a week is basically impossible for anyone, especially for a stay-at-home mama (to a busy toddler) whose hubby is out of town for the week, my brain has been running on auto-pilot (a.k.a. lots of random, disorganized, and scattered thoughts; a.k.a. nothing gets done). Raise your hand if you’ve been there.
The good news is that this recipe is so easy that even brains on auto-pilot can manage to make this soup turn out delicious.
Oh, and what’s more? Even the toddler liked it. Score!I know you’ll love it too.
“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” Psalm 139:14 (King James Version)
Vegan Creamy Tomato Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced onion about 1/2 onion, diced
- 1 large clove garlic minced
- 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil divided
- 1/2 cup raw cashews soaked for a few hours, if you're not using a high-speed blender
- 1/2 cup water
- 4 1/2 cups canned stewed tomatoes about three 14.5 ounce cans
- 1/4 cup coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon dried basil or a few tablespoons of fresh, if you have it
- 3/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
Instructions
- In a pan, saute onion and garlic in 1 teaspoon olive oil for 1 to 2 minutes, just until they are soft and fragrant.
- Place cashews and water in blender. Blend on high for about 30 seconds, or until the mixture is fairly smooth and creamy. If you need more liquid, add a cup or two of your stewed tomatoes and blend again until all the cashew pieces have disappeared.
- Add sauteed onion/garlic and remaining stewed tomatoes to blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour blender contents into a saucepan on medium to medium-high heat. As soup begins to simmer, stir frequently to prevent lumpiness and burning. Simmer for about 8-10 minutes, or until soup color has darkened slightly.
- Add remaining ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil, coconut milk, granulated sugar, dried basil, and salt to your saucepan.
- Taste for salt and serve immediately--preferably with hot grilled vegan cheese sandwiches.
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Hope you are taking the time to care of yourself and your little one the way! I am really resonating with how you were feeling, I live in Cincinnati and it was rainy and in the 40’s today and also chilly yesterday. I remembered I had some black bean soup in the freezer for just this kind of occasion. I whipped together some vegan (and gluten free) corn bread… warming and yummy dinner! And my 11 year old liked it, which I agree equals a score. And now I think your soup may win points too!
I’m always on the lookout for a new tomato soup recipe. I love the idea of adding cashews! :)
YES. The cashews (and the splash of coconut milk) take this soup to the next level, in my opinion. :) Love tomato soup!
Mmmm, that so looks and sounds so good!
*soup*
This sounds yummy Lindsay. It’s turned cold and I hear thunder outside – a perfect day for soup. Get as much rest as you can and be sure to get plenty of omega-3 fats.
Can you substitute almond or soy milk for the coconut milk?
I thought granulated sugar is processed using bone char. How can that be considered vegan?
Dearest Lindsay,
Thank you ever so much for this wondrous recipe! I had a wintry craving for (fresh) vegan tomato soup tonight and my oh my did your recipe hit the spot! (Nailed it, to be exact!) It was delicious and warming and exceptionally creamy…an all around delight! I had previously considered picking some up to-go from a local vegan/vegan-friendly joint but none seemed to be serving any…thus, cue my very first endeavor at homemade soup…and what a success it was! (I especially loved how simple the preparation/cooking process was!) I even served it to my supportive, yet non-vegan family at dinner and their tastebuds were equally (if not more so) blown away!!! My younger brother even deemed it to be “the best soup I’ve ever had!” and, considering he is the least supportive of my vegan lifestyle, I was over the moon with joy!! This just might become my winter staple! I look forward to experimenting with more of your recipes…Much love to you xo
Really good recipe. I replaced the canned tomatoes with a 32 oz. Jar of Classico: tomato and basil sauce from the store and i boiled 3 tomatoes from the vine and added that. I used a little less than 1/4 a large onion and added a little extra cashews. Great recipe. It taste very similar, if not the same as a good can of creamed tomato soup, though non of the dairy.
Just made this for dinner during 2015 June thunder storms. Hit the spot! I sure goofed up a bit and should have soaked the cashews longer so it’s not 100% smooth. But otherwise this is super creamy!
This soup is awesome and so easy to make. I’ll never use canned soup again!
This is an amazing tomato soup recipe. My non-vegan husband is a fan of tomato “bisque” so I’ve been looking for a non-dairy version. The added cashews and coconut milk in this recipe really nail the flavor and texture of the “bisque”. I will be making this again!
I fell in love with this soup! I want to make a large batch and can it freeze, any tips?
I haven’t tried freezing it yet myself, but I imagine that it freezes just fine. I might try freezing in thick quart-sized freezer bags. :)
Is the coconut milk the canned kind or the refrigerated, dairy-substitute kind?
I have made this twice in the past four days. It is so delicious. I made it first as soup with Chloe’s Focaccia bread that you recommended in another post. Then my husband hinted that it would make a good pasta sauce, so leftovers were used as pasta sauce – also delicious. Then I wanted the soup again so I made another batch AND another pan of the focaccia bread. I used the silk brand of coconut milk from the dairy case and still can’t believe there is only half a cup of cashews in this. Thank you so much for the recipe and inspiration!
Hi Lindsay,
Thank you for sharing your creamy tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich recipes.
My husband and I have been vegetarian for 11 years. I became vegan 3 months ago.
My 12 y.o. son became vegetarian a couple of years ago. This was his first attempt at making dinner. The dicing of the potatoes took a while, but the final result was well worth the wait. My husband wasn’t sold on the vegan cheese, but we all agreed the soup was absolutely delicious.
Thanks, Alia! So glad you enjoyed it. And yessss…all the veggie chopping can be tedious at times.
Hi Alia! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. The potato dicing takes a while, I agree. I am thinking about trying this recipe with mashed potato flakes and see how it works. :)
Have allergy to coconut. OK to sub reg or skim milk????
absolutely! Or, if you’re aiming for vegan, you could sub with unsweetened almond milk as well, it just won’t be quite as creamy.
Would canned diced tomatoes work, or does it need to be stewed? Thanks!
Absolutely! Canned diced tomatoes just fine as well, as long as your are using the same ounce amount.