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Home » Recipes » Soup & Stew Recipes

Panera Creamy Tomato Soup Copycat

Published: Mar 19, 2021 · Modified: May 5, 2025 by Brooke Fajcz · As an Amazon Influencer, we earn from qualifying purchases.

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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.

Hungry for more? Check out our 11 Panera Bread copycat soup recipes or this Panera tomato basil bread.

person holding a bowl of Panera tomato soup
Jump to:
  • Ingredients
  • Variations
  • How to Make Panera Tomato Soup
  • Recipe FAQs
  • Serve
  • Expert Tips
  • More Panera Bread Recipes
  • Recipe
  • Panera Creamy Tomato Soup Copycat
  • Comments

Ingredients

glass bowls of ingredients for Panera tomato soup

The most of the ingredients for Panera creamy tomato soup are probably already in your pantry or fridge. Here's the key ingredients you need for this Panera creamy tomato soup...

  • 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.
  • Dairy: We used heavy cream to make the soup creamy, but for a vegan or dairy free version use full fat coconut milk.
  • Croutons: We used Panera Bread's black pepper foccacia ones.

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

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.

How to Make Panera Tomato Soup

Gather all the ingredients. Chop the onions small and mince the garlic, as this isn't pureed in a blender.

blending tomato paste and sauteeing aromatics in a pot
  1. 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. (image 1)
  2. In a large Dutch oven over medium high heat, heat one tablespoon of olive oil to shimmering. Sauté 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. (image 2)
deglazing the pan and adding vegetable broth
  1. 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. (image 3)
  2. Slowly add the rest of the vegetable broth while stirring to prevent lumps. (image 4)
adding tomato puree and cream to the soup
  1. Next, add the two cans of puréed 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. (image 5)
  2. Pour in the heavy cream or full fat coconut milk and stir until well combined. (image 6)
stirring and serving the tomato soup
  1. Remove from the heat. When ready to serve, garnish each serving with with 6 black pepper focaccia croutons and fresh chopped parsley. (image 7)
  2. Serve with a grilled cheese sandwich, salad, kettle chips, tomato basil bread, or a French baguette from Panera. (image 8)

Recipe FAQs

How many calories are in Panera's creamy tomato soup?

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.

Is Panera's creamy tomato soup vegan?

No, it has dairy cream in it, but if you make your own, use full fat coconut milk as a tasty, dairy-free option.

How much does this soup cost at Panera Bread?

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.

What do you serve creamy tomato soup with for lunch?

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.

Serve

Panera serves this entree with a choice of sourdough bread bowl for an upcharge, a bag of kettle chips, a piece of baguette, or an apple. Other serving suggestions are a slice of crusty bread, side salad, and fresh fruit.

Looking for other Panera soups? Try our recipes for summer corn chowder, 10 vegetable soup, black bean soup, and broccoli cheddar soup. Round out your meal by serving one of these 8 Panera copycat dessert recipes after you enjoy your soup.

holding a spoonful of creamy tomato soup.

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.

More Panera Bread Recipes

  • person holding a spoonful of wild rice soup
    Panera Chicken & Wild Rice Soup
  • large bowl of Panera turkey chili with a wooden spoon and bowls of toppings
    Panera Turkey Chili Copycat
  • bowl of Panera chicken noodle soup
    Panera Chicken Noodle Soup Copycat
  • bread bowl of Panera broccoli cheddar soup
    Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup

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Recipe

person holding a spoonful of Panera tomato soup

Panera Creamy Tomato Soup Copycat

Our Panera creamy tomato soup copycat recipe is bursting with flavor and is so simple and easy to make.  We've cracked the code, and it tastes better than Panera's!  This savory, rich, and comforting soup is vegetarian, and can be made vegan and gluten free.
4.8 from 4 votes
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Course: Soup
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes minutes
Servings: 8 cups
Calories: 251kcal
Author: Brooke & Emma

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
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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.

Video

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.

Nutrition

Calories: 251kcal (13%)Carbohydrates: 23g (8%)Protein: 4g (8%)Fat: 17g (26%)Saturated Fat: 8g (50%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 41mg (14%)Sodium: 654mg (28%)Potassium: 481mg (14%)Fiber: 4g (17%)Sugar: 10g (11%)Vitamin A: 982IU (20%)Vitamin C: 14mg (17%)Calcium: 91mg (9%)Iron: 3mg (17%)

Serving sizes and nutritional information are only an estimate and may vary from your results.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Pam

    October 17, 2024 at 7:50 pm

    5 stars
    Loved this! It is obviously more work than going through the Panera drive=through, but much easier on the budget. I will still probably treat myself to Panera occasionally, but this is a wonderful alternative!

    Reply
    • Emma Fajcz

      October 18, 2024 at 7:22 am

      Thank you so much, Pam! We're glad that this is just as good as Panera and easier on your budget. 😊

      Reply
  2. Steph

    October 18, 2021 at 4:39 pm

    4 stars
    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?

    Reply
    • Emma

      October 19, 2021 at 7:30 am

      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.

      Reply
  3. Alex

    March 19, 2021 at 12:49 pm

    5 stars
    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.

    Reply
    • Emma

      March 19, 2021 at 12:52 pm

      Thanks for leaving a review, Alex!

      Reply
  4. Beth

    March 19, 2021 at 12:48 pm

    5 stars
    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.

    Reply
    • Emma

      March 19, 2021 at 12:52 pm

      I'm glad that you enjoyed this soup, Beth!

      Reply

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We're Brooke & Emma Fajcz, the mother-daughter team behind Savor the Flavour. Increase your kitchen confidence with our recipes, instructional photos, and helpful tips and facts. Our recipes have been featured in Oprah Magazine, The Guardian, Parade, Insider, Delish, and BuzzFeed.

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