I’m doing it again. Because my Tomato-Less Tomato Soup is one of the most popular recipes of the year so far, I just couldn’t leave well enough alone and made a Cream Of Tomato-Less Tomato Soup, too!
Yes, both recipes really are nightshade free! But both recipes have that can’t-quite-put-my-finger-on-it flavor of a classic tomato soup, with that hint of acid that means you can’t quite stop eating until the whole bowl is gone. And maybe a second one, too.
It’s ok, I totally get it. I didn’t eat a lot of soup growing up, but that might be perhaps why I associate it with comfort. That warm bowl of soup that I got when I was just starting to feel better from whatever bug had been traveling around school that winter. Or when it was the only thing I could swallow after I had my tonsils out.
The good news is that you definitely don’t have to be sick to enjoy this Cream Of Tomato-Less Tomato Soup! Now, I guess I really must get back to work on that elusive dairy and grain free grilled cheese sammich to go with it, ha!
One last thing: I finished off this creamy style tomato-less tomato soup with a drizzle of basil oil and a good sprinkling of my Vegan Nut Free Parmesan Sprinkles. But it would be just as delicious topped off with the Crispy Herbed Croutons you can find with my classic tomato-less tomato soup, too!
PrintCream Of Tomato-Less Tomato Soup with Basil Oil & Parm Sprinkles
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
For the cream of tomato-less tomato soup:
- 3 tbsp / 45 ml avocado oil or neutral fat of choice
- 1 medium yellow onion, about 9 oz / 255 g or so
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 1 lb / 454 g carrots (orange for the best color)
- 1 cup / 240 ml red wine (I used an inexpensive Merlot) (see notes)
- 5 cups / 1.2 L chicken or vegetable broth, divided
- 1 cup / 240 g butternut squash puree (see notes)
- 6 oz / 170 g drained canned sliced beets
- ¼ cup + 2 tbsp / 90 ml lemon juice
- ¼ cup / 60 ml red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp / 3 g Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp / 3 g dried basil (see notes)
- 1 tsp / 5 g fine sea salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper (omit for AIP elimination phase)
- Optional, for additional color: ¼ cup / 60 ml reserved liquid from the canned beets OR 1 tbsp 15 ml beet juice (see notes)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup / 240 ml coconut milk
For the basil oil:
- 1/2 packed cup / 15 g fresh basil leaves
- 1/4 cup / 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
- Pinch of fine sea salt, to taste
To garnish:
- Nut Free Vegan Parmesan Sprinkles, to taste
Instructions
- CARAMELIZE: Add the oil or fat of choice to a heavy bottomed dutch oven on the stovetop over low-medium heat. While the oil is heating up, peel and chop the onion finely. Smash the garlic cloves with the back of a heavy knife and discard the skin. Add the sliced onions and garlic cloves to the hot oil. Season with a little salt and cook, stirring often, until the onions begin to take on a golden color.
- SOFTEN: Peel and slice the carrots thinly. Add them to the pan, along with the red wine and 3 cups / 720 ml of the broth. Bring the wine and broth mixture to a simmer, then partly cover the pan with a lid, leaving space for steam to escape. Cook the carrots until they soften to fork tender and the liquid reduces, about 25 minutes.
- BLEND: Carefully transfer the cooked vegetables and remaining cooking liquid to a blender, along with the butternut squash puree, sliced beets, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, Italian seasoning, dried basil, salt and black pepper, if using. Blend – making sure to leave space for steam to escape the pitcher – until completely smooth.
- SIMMER: Return the blended soup to the dutch oven or pan you were using earlier, over low-medium heat. Add the remaining 2 cups / 480 ml of broth, the reserved beet liquid or beet juice (if using) and the bay leaves to the soup and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer, stirring often to avoid splattering, and cook until heated through. Taste and add additional seasoning if you like. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Add the coconut milk and cook, without boiling, until the soup is hot enough to serve.
- BLEND: While the soup is heating through, make the basil oil. Add the basil, olive oil and salt to a high sided cup or jar. Use an immersion blender to whiz up the oil until it’s roughly combined with the basil. I like to leave mine with pieces of basil, but if you like a smoother oil, blend until the basil oil is to your liking.
- SERVE: Divide the soup between bowls and top each with some of the basil oil and parm sprinkles. Serve immediately.
Notes
I used red wine in this recipe for both depth of flavor and color. The alcohol cooks off, so it’s a-ok if you’re AIP-ing. You can omit it if you like and simply add some extra broth. A splash or two of balsamic vinegar would be a nice addition if you’re skipping the red wine.
I tested this out with butternut puree as that’s what I had in my pantry when I developed the recipe. I think you could probably sub the butternut with pumpkin puree instead if you like.
I used canned sliced beets packed in just water and salt. I find these have a milder taste than using fresh beets. Make sure to reserve some of the brine to add later on in the recipe for an extra pop of color if you like. If you’re using pre-roasted beets, you could add a smaller amount of beet juice instead of the brine.
My italian seasoning blend was very oregano / marjoram forward, so I added some extra dried basil. If you’re on the elimination phase of the AIP and can’t use black pepper, the dried basil also brings an extra peppery note of flavor that you would otherwise miss out on!
This looks so yummy! However, my husband seems to react to the chicken broth I’ve either made of bought. I cannot find vegetable broth that doesn’t have tomato paste in it. Have you found one? Or do you have a recipe for vegtable broth?
Hi Beverly, tomato paste and puree seem to sneak their way into a lot of broths! The only one I know of, off the top of my head, is Pacific’s Mushroom broth, which has literally mushrooms, water and salt as its ingredients, I believe. I haven’t tested that out myself, so you might want to taste it first and see if you think it might be too strong of a mushroom-y flavor. If so, perhaps try using a ratio of half water, half broth. I do have a (very old!) post on the site about making your own vegetable stock which you might find useful here. Hope that helps!
What did you serve on the side? I’ve been trying to find Yucan Crunch everywhere, but I can’t! Is there an alternative you would recommend for optimal soup dipping? Thanks!
Those in the photo are Yucan Crunch, but I’m not sure if those are still being made right now since the business that used to make them is in the process of being sold, I believe. If you have access to an international grocery, there are other versions of the same thing available, called casabe – cassava crackers. Honestly, though, I usually just have this soup straight up, or with a sprinkling of my nut free “parm” recipe on top. I think cook it up paleo’s crusty bread might be great here, but I haven’t tried it out myself!
This was fantastic- thank you!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!