This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
It is officially fall, and you know what that means! It’s time for cozy fall soup recipes – and this tomato basil soup with grilled cheese wins for the ultimate cozy classic! Check out my q and a if you’re wanting to make this tomato bisque recipe vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Tomato Bisque Recipe
This tomato bisque soup recipe is everything I love about fall in a bowl! You home will smell amazing because you slow-roasted vegetables for hours. This soup comes together pretty quickly, excluding the slow-roast of the veggies, but that’s your oven doing the work. The taste is out of this world and then you dip the most amazing grilled cheese sandwich into your rich and creamy tomato soup, it is pure comfort, every…single..bite.
Gather Your Ingredients
Tomato Bisque Soup
Chop
- Flavor bomb Tomatoes: 1 pint, cut in half
- Dry Farmed Tomatoes: 6, cut in half
- Garlic Head: 1, cut stem off
- Yellow Onion: 1, chopped
- Shallots: 2, chopped
- Bell Pepper: 1, chopped
- Chives: for topping, chopped
Gather
- MSG: 1 tbsp
- Olive Oil: 3 tbsp
- Salt and Pepper: to taste
- Oregano: 1 tbsp
- Tomato Paste: 2 oz
- Chicken Broth or Vegetable Broth: 5-6 cups, use vegetable for the vegetarian recipe option
- Basil Leaves: 8-10
- Heavy Cream: ¾ cup
Equipment
- Cutting Board and Knife
- Sheet Pan with Parchment Paper
- Blender
- Large Heavy Bottom Pot
- Large Strainer
Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Grate and Slice
- Gruyere: ⅔ cup, freshly grated
- Parmesan: 2 tbsp, freshly grated
- Monterey Jack: 1 or 2, sliced
Gather
- 2 sourdough slices
- 1 tbsp mascarpone
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tsp honey
- 2½ tsp salsa macha or chili crisps
Equipment
- Cheese Grater
- Pan
- Spatula
🍅 And that is it for your tomato bisque soup 🍅
🔥Chef Nadia’s Tip🔥
Tip: Add msg to the tomatoes because it intensifies the flavor! Glutamates (msg) is naturally occurring in foods like tomatoes, so adding more will only enhance the flavors in this fresh tomato soup recipe – see my q and a for more information.
Substitutions
- Tomatoes → You can swap out the flavor bomb tomatoes for a pint of cherry tomatoes and the dry-farmed tomatoes can be swapped with Roma or heirloom tomatoes instead.
- Onion and shallots → You can use white onions (milder) or red (sweeter) if you would like. Use extra onions if you don’t have shallots.
- Check out my q and a for vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free recipe options!
The Perfect Pairings
Cucumbertini: This is a bright and fresh cocktail that would pair perfectly with this savory basil tomato bisque soup.
Arugula Fennel Salad: Every dish needs a fresh salad, and this is my go-to! It’s super easy and so delicious.
Toasted Ciabatta: This is for the people that just want the soup and to skip the grilled cheese. It is great if you are looking for a vegan option (see my q and a).
Salted Pecan Pie: Another classic but with a twist. This amazing pie has a Dulce de Leche caramel sauce. It’s one of my favorite desserts and also perfect for any fall soup recipe.
Tomato Bisque Recipe: Questions Answered
The difference is in the way they are grown, dry-farmed tomatoes are grown using very little irrigation once they are established plants, hence the “dry.” This forces the roots to grow deeper looking for water, and because of that, the tomatoes come out with a more concentrated, less watery flavor and are described as meatier. Campari tomatoes are usually grown in a greenhouse and are watered, making them have a sweeter and juicier texture instead.
MSG has long been surrounded by misconceptions that stem from some early studies that have since then been debunked. It is actually a flavor enhancer that naturally occurs in foods like tomatoes and cheese and is perfectly safe to eat.
You can use canned instead – drain the canned tomatoes, cut them in half and then add them to the sheet pan. Drizzle a little olive oil and roast according to the recipe.
It can easily be adapted into any of these.
Vegetarian: Yes! but you do have to watch out for a couple of things. Make sure you use the vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. Check your cheeses! You need to double check that you’re buying cheese with a vegetable rennet because some of them do come with animal rennet!
Vegan: Use a vegan cream like cashew cream instead of the heavy cream and the tomato bisque soup is vegan. The grilled cheese is not – I recommend making toasted ciabatta or something along those lines instead.
Gluten-free: Make sure your bread is gluten-free and then everything else is good.
Tomato Bisque Recipe
Equipment
- sheet pan
- parchment paper
- blender
- large heavy bottom pot
- large strainer
- cheese grater
- pan
- spatula
Ingredients
The Soup – 6 servings
- 1 pint flavor bombs tomatoes
- 1 head garlic
- 6 medium dry farmed tomatoes
- 1 large yellow onion
- 2 shallots
- 1 large bell pepper, or 2 medium ones
- 1 tsp msg
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 2 oz tomato paste
- 5-6 cups chicken broth, or vegetable broth
- 8-10 large basil leaves
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- salt and pepper, to taste
- chives, to taste, for topping
Grilled Cheese – 1 serving
- 2 slices large sourdough slices, If gluten-free, make sure to get a gluten-free bread
- ⅔ cup gruyere, freshly grated, adjust the amount to preference
- 1 or 2 slices Monterey Jack, adjust the amount to preference
- 2 tbsp parmesan, freshly grated
- 1 tbsp mascarpone
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tsp honey
- 2½ tsp salsa macha, or chili crisp
Instructions
The Soup
- Preheat your oven to 300℉.
- Slice the tomatoes in half. Remove the top of the garlic. Give the onion, shallot and peppers a rough chop.
- Cover a sheet pan in parchment paper and add all the veggies to it. Sprinkle the tomatoes with msg (if you know you know). Drizzle the veggies with olive oil, a healthy pinch of salt, oregano and rub tomato paste on top.
- Place your sheet pan in the oven and roast for 1 hour. Lower the heat to 275°F and roast for another hour to and hour and a half.Optional: If you want to skip the slow-roast, just put it in the oven at 375°F for 45-60 minutes.
- To a blender, add the veggies, broth and basil leaves. Blend until smooth.
- Strain the tomato mixture into a large pot. Bring to a simmer until warmed through. Add cream, salt and pepper, then turn off the heat.
Grilled Cheese
- Place a slice of bread down and add grated gruyere, a drizzle of honey and salsa macha, then a slice of Monterey Jack. Spread the mascarpone on another slice of bread and place it on top with the mascarpone side facing inward. Spread butter on the outsides of both slices of bread and dip in parmesan.
- Preheat a pan on medium heat for 2 minutes. Lower to medium-low and add the sandwich. Cook until the outsides and brown and crispy and the inside is nice and melty.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
