Delicious Tomato Soup with Cheese Crouton Topper

This delicious tomato soup with cheese crouton topper combines the classic combo of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich in a delicious and creative way. I’ll show you how to make a unique roasted tomato soup and for the best flavors in the topping, start with good, wholesome cheese for the ultimate flavor and melty texture.

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The following post is sponsored by Cache Valley Creamery. All the opinions and comments about Cache Valley Cheese are my own.

Why I love this recipe

You can use any tomato soup recipe and add these steps for the crunchy, cheesy crouton topper. That being said, the roasted tomato soup is A-mazing! Super easy, and mostly makes itself. The cheesy crouton topper is so satisfying and tasty, it’s a fun departure from grilled cheese sandwiches.

Recipe notes and substitutions

• If you want to make any of the recipe ahead of time, the roasted tomato soup can be fully made without the topper and refrigerated for up to 5 days. The bread can be toasted and saved in a zip lock bag at room temperature for about 3 days.
• I use cheddar, mozzarella, and Parmesan in this recipe. You can combine any of your favorite cheeses, keeping in mind you want some good melty cheese for the topping.
• This recipe makes enough for 4 hearty servings. If you want to double the recipe, just roast it for longer and maybe only increase the bread croutons by another half of what is called for.

How to make Roasted Tomato Soup with Cheese Crouton Topper

Whole, canned tomatoes are crushed, onions, butter, garlic, and seasonings are added to a heavy dutch oven or stock pot.

This mixture is roasted in the oven for about 45 minutes until the mixture has reduced and thickened. Your kitchen will smell wonderful as all the flavors combine.

Remove from the oven and using an immersion blender (or regular blender, in batches), blend until smooth or leave a little chunky, if you like.

While the soup is roasting in the oven, sourdough bread gets torn and coated in butter and Italian seasoning. Then this gets added in a top rack to brown at the same time the soup is roasting.

Bake the croutons until barely golden, since they’ll brown more when the entire pot is placed under the broiler.

Add a good amount of fresh, grated cheddar and mozzarella to the top of the smooth soup mixture.

Cover the soup with a single layer of croutons, no need to overcrowd them.

Then add more shredded cheddar and some shredded Parmesan. Broil for just a few minutes until the cheese is melty and bubbly and the croutons have browned some more.

Now, fresh out from under the broiler, the Tomato Soup with Cheesy Crouton Topper is ready to serve. Top with extra shredded cheese and fresh basil or fresh thyme.

This recipe has become such a favorite in my house. If you love tomato soup and you’re also wanting the full “grilled cheese sandwich for dipping” experience, you can make the soup as instructed (it’s soooo good), and instead of the cheesy croutons, make my Ultimate Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with instructions for grilling or baking in the oven! The baking method is wonderful when you want a lot of sandwiches to be able to serve at once. Just as good as grilled. I hope you love all my recipes, and for me, there is no ‘soup season’ as we love soup and everything about it, all year long. If you’re with me there, be sure to check out my Corn Chowder with Summer Squash recipe that I make a lot. It’s the best corn chowder we’ve ever tasted and one of our favorite soups, period.

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5 from 5 votes

Delicious Tomato Soup with Cheese Crouton Topper

This is a great combination of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches in one bowl. You can use any tomato soup recipe you like but this roasted method is very easy and delivers deep, full flavor in every bite. Use as much cheese as you like to make it even more cheesy and make sure to use a good, crusty bread for the croutons.

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients 

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• 1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
• 1 small yellow or white onion thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic crushed
• 4 tbsp butter divided
• 4 leaves fresh basil plus extra for garnish
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp kosher salt more or less to liking
• ½ tsp fresh black pepper
• ¼ tsp Tabasco or other hot sauce
• 4 ounces Cache Valley Creamery grated cheddar cheese about one cup
• 2 ounces Cache Valley Creamery grated mozzarella cheese about ¼ cup
• 2 ounces Cache Valley Creamery shredded Parmesan about ¼ cup
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• ½ loaf sourdough bread about 8 ounces or 5 slices
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Instructions

• Place one oven rack in the second from bottom position and place another rack in the second from top position. Pre heat the oven to 425℉.
• In a large dutch oven empty the whole peeled tomatoes, then using your hands, gently crush the tomatoes. Add the sliced tomatoes, garlic, and 2 tablespoons of the butter. Place 4 basil leaves on top (you can also substitute 4 thyme sprigs instead of the basil). Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil and season with 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Add hot sauce, if using.
• Roast on the lower rack until the garlic is soft and the mixture is bubbly and thickened, about 45 minutes.
• While the soup is roasting, tear or cut the sourdough into 1-inch cubes. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, adding to a large bowl. Add the Italian seasoning to the butter, then add the sourdough cubes. Toss with a large spoon or your hands to coat the bread with the butter mixture. Spread the bread on a parchment lined baking sheet and place the sheet on the top oven rack to bake during the last 13-15 minutes of roasting the soup. Watch the croutons and remove when they're golden on the edges. The bread will crisp a bit more during the second time in the oven. Remove the bread from the oven and set aside.
• Remove the soup and place the pot over medium heat. If you added thyme sprigs in place of basil, remove the sprigs from the pot. Add the vegetable broth to the soup and simmer, stirring to remove the fond from the sides of the oven (Dark brown bits that accumulated in the oven).
• Stir in the balsamic vinegar. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup directly in the pot, until smooth. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
• Move an oven rack to the middle position in the oven and heat the oven to High on Broil. Sprinkle half of the cheddar cheese over the soup, all of the mozzarella, and half of the Parmesan cheese. Top with the croutons, arranging them in a single layer to cover the soup. Sprinkle the remaining cheddar and Parmesan cheese over the croutons. Broil on the middle rack until the cheese has melted, watching it so not to burn, only 1 or 2 minutes.
• Serve immediately, adding more basil or thyme as a garnish. See notes for make ahead instructions.

Equipment

1 large Dutch oven or stock pot at least 5 quarts

1 Cheese grater

1 Baking sheet

Notes

• Make ahead directions- The soup can be made ahead and refrigerated, without the crouton topper, for up to 5 days before serving, or made and frozen for 3 months. The croutons can be toasted and placed in an airtight container for up to 3 days before serving.
• Serving variations- If you want the soup to be more creamy, add up to 1/2 cup cream before blending with the emersion blender. Replace the basil with thyme leaves if desired.