Are you a big fan of tomato soup on a cold, rainy day? Our copycat Panera creamy tomato soup will not disappoint with the sauteed aromatics and caramelized tomato slurry. Use good quality ingredients, and let it simmer so it will be absolutely perfect for pairing with a grilled cheese sandwich.
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Ingredients
The most of the ingredients for Panera creamy tomato soup are probably already in your pantry or fridge. Make sure to splurge a little on the canned pureed tomatoes since it's the star ingredient. Panera garnishes this entree with black pepper foccacia croutons, but feel free to use ciabatta.
- Oil: We used classic olive oil, but if you prefer, use butter.
- Aromatics: We diced a yellow onion and minced fresh garlic.
- Vegetables: We used good quality canned pureed tomatoes and tomato paste.
- Dried Spices: We measured out salt, white pepper, oregano, basil, celery seed, and red pepper flakes to flavor the tomato slurry.
- Thickener: We used cornstarch, but you can substitute with arrowroot.
- Sweetener: We used white granulated sugar, but feel free to use the sweetener of your choice.
- Liquid: We used store bought vegetable stock, but feel free to make your own.
- Dairy: We used heavy cream to make the soup creamy, but for a vegan or dairy free version use full fat coconut milk.
- Fresh Spices: We used flatleaf Italian parsley to add a bit of color for garnish, but Panera doesn't, so it's totally optional.
- Croutons: We used Panera Bread's black pepper foccacia ones.
How to Make
Gather all the ingredients. Chop the onions small and mince the garlic, as this isn't pureed in a blender.
- Put all the ingredients for the tomato slurry in a blender and blend until smooth. If necessary, use a spatula to scrape the sides, then place it in a bowl.
- In a or large Dutch oven over medium high heat, heat one tablespoon of olive oil to shimmering. Saute the onion for 3 minutes with a sprinkle of salt, stirring occasionally with a large wooden spoon, then add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant.
3. Add the tomato slurry and cook for 5 minutes to help it caramelize. Deglaze the pan with a bit of vegetable broth and a wooden turner.
4. Slowly add the rest of the vegetable broth while stirring to prevent lumps.
5. Next, add the two cans of pureed tomatoes. Stir until well mixed, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary. Simmer for 5 minutes more.
6. Pour in the heavy cream or full fat coconut milk and stir until well combined.
7. Remove from the heat. When ready to serve, garnish each serving with with 6 black pepper focaccia croutons and fresh chopped parsley.
8. Serve with a grilled cheese sandwich, salad, kettle chips, tomato basil bread, or a French baguette from Panera.
Recipe FAQs
At Panera Bread one cup of their creamy tomato soup, has 200 calories, 13g fat, 35g carbs and 910mg sodium.
For one cup of our copycat tomato soup, you will consume 236 calories, 16.1g fat, 19.8g carbs, and 343.8mg of sodium. Our fat and calories are a little higher because of the cream used; you can always cut back on the cream to reduce the fat and calories. For more nutritional facts, please scroll to the end of the recipe card.
No, it has dairy cream in it, but if you make your own, use full fat coconut milk as a tasty, dairy-free option.
A one cup serving size is $5.69, and a 1 ½ cup of soup with a small bag of chips, dinner roll, or chunk of French baguette is $6.69 plus tax. To get 8 cups to go at Panera Bread would be $45.52 plus tax and tip, which is obviously more expensive. It's way cheaper to make it home, as this copycat recipe uses pantry staples and is very cost effective to make.
A grilled cheese sandwich is a classic pairing, but if you're looking for less calories, serve this with a side salad or a slice of Panera's tomato basil bread.
Variations
- Need this vegan? Swap the heavy cream with full fat coconut milk.
- Need this gluten free? Swap the cornstarch for arrowroot.
- Need this sugar-free? Swap out the white sugar for your favorite sweetener.
- Need less fat? Reduce the heavy cream to ½ cup or use half and half.
Expert Tips
- Need this thicker? Increase the tomato paste by 1 tablespoon and cornstarch by 1 teaspoon or decrease the vegetable broth by ½ cup.
- Need this quicker? Buy pureed canned tomatoes instead of the diced.
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Recipe
Panera Creamy Tomato Soup Copycat
Ingredients
For the Tomato Slurry
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 ½ teaspoons dried basil
- 2 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon celery seed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
For the Soup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- 2 28- ounce cans pureed tomatoes
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley for garnish, optional
- 48 croutons from black pepper foccacia bread, optional
Instructions
- Blend the tomato paste, olive oil, dried spices, sugar, and cornstarch in a blender until smooth, then set aside in a bowl.
- Heat up the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium high heat. Saute the onion sprinkle it with salt and cook for 3 minutes while stirring occasionally, then add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more, stirring constantly.
- Reduce the heat to medium and add the tomato slurry. Cook for 5 minutes while stirring to caramelize the paste.
- Increase the heat to medium high and pour in ¼ cup of vegetable broth. Use a wooden turner to scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
- Pour in the rest of the vegetable broth and the two cans of pureed tomatoes. Stir and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust spices, if necessary. Cook for another 5 minutes.
- To make this creamy, pour in the heavy cream (or full fat coconut milk for a vegan option). Stir until well combined.
- Garnish the soup with parsley and croutons and serve with a grilled cheese sandwich, side salad, kettle chips, or a slice of Panera's tomato basil bread.
- Garnish the soup with parsley and croutons and serve with a grilled cheese sandwich, side salad, kettle chips, or a slice of Panera's tomato basil bread.
Notes
- Want a thicker soup? Add ½ cup less vegetable broth or increase the tomato paste by 1 tablespoon and cornstarch by 1 teaspoon.
- Want this cooked quicker? Use puree canned tomatoes instead of diced and you can skip pureeing the soup.
Steph
Made this today for our first real cold fall day and my whole family loved it. I felt like it was a little off from Panera’s but I can’t figure out what it was. Also wondering if you can you freeze this soup?
Emma
We're sorry that you thought it was a little off, but we're glad your family enjoyed it, Steph! Yes, this can be frozen.
Alex
This is definitely creamy, and the flavor is delicious. The spices really compliment the tomato. While this isn't my favorite Panera soup, it has a great flavor.
Emma
Thanks for leaving a review, Alex!
Beth
This smells comforting and is a nice creamy texture. The warm tomato and little onion chunks are great. It is spiced nicely, not too garlicky or spicy. The Panera Bread version is more watery, and this one tastes much better than the original.
Emma
I'm glad that you enjoyed this soup, Beth!