The Chunky Chef

Everyday meals with a dash of gourmet

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Slow Cooker Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

Morning everyone 🙂  This post is one of the first few recipes I posted on my blog, and the pictures were… um… kinda terrible lol.  So I’ve been itching to make this again and take some new pictures for you all!  This soup is unbelievably easy to make and tastes incredible.  You won’t want canned tomato soup ever again!  Here’s the original post:

Trick-or-Treat!!  Dinner on Halloween night has always been a horrible scramble, and stressful as all get out.  There’s dinner to make, eat, clean up, costumes to put on, pictures to take and then walking around in the cold and rainy evening… sounds so fun huh?  What sounds better on a cold, rainy night other than.. soup!!  I went with an old classic with a few twists… tomato, basil and parmesan soup with mozzarella cheese stuffed crescents (the “grilled cheese” component).  Wanna hear the best part?  It cooks in the crockpot 😀  I looooove my crockpot on cold days.

The soup as it's cooking in the crockpot

The soup as it’s cooking in the crockpot

So once the soup has cooked for 4-8 hours on low, you ladle it into a food processor or blender and puree it, then it’ll look like this…

Ugh, weird lighting on this one, but you can see how smooth it looks

Ugh, weird lighting on this one, but you can see how smooth it looks

Now you simply make your roux, add the cream, let it thicken slightly, then pour into the crockpot, add the parmesan cheese and let it cook another 20-30 minutes.  Top it off with extra parmesan and basil if you’d like!

Now here’s the finished product and a comparison of the pictures… lord I hope you like the new one better 🙂

Slow Cooker Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

I never get tired of this soup… it’s such a perfect winter meal.  As much as I’d rather winter be over… I’m looking outside now at a snow covered backyard, so bring on the winter meals for a little while longer.

Slow Cooker Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Soup

To me, no soup is complete without some sort of bread to dunk into the soup (possibly because I just LOVE bread)… so I made my own twist on some cheese stuffed crescent rolls.  That’s right folks… two great recipes for you today!

Garlic and Herb Cheese Stuffed Crescent Rolls

Ohhhhhh so garlicky, so full of herb flavor, soooooo cheesy!!

And very simple to make as well!  Just grab 2 cans of crescent rolls and separate them into triangles.  Melt your butter and add in minced garlic, Italian seasoning, parsley and basil.  Brush the triangles with the herb garlic butter mixture.  Then slice 8 pieces of mozzarella string cheese in half, and place one piece of cheese on the wide part of the triangle.  Roll it up like you would normally, tucking in the edges (don’t want that cheesy goodness to all melt out!).  Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and brush with more of the butter mixture.  Bake for 10-12 minutes at 375… and that’s it 🙂

Buttery, rich, garlicky and full of fresh herbs and delicious mozzarella cheese

I’m always nervous to make new recipes for other people without testing them first, but these were a hit with my whole family!  So if you’re craving some soul-warming soup on a chilly day… try this one, you won’t be disappointed!!

Recipe inspired from Le Creme de la Crumb

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Slow Cooker Creamy Tomato and Basil Soup

Course: Entree, Soup
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Total Time: 6 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 4 -6 servings
Author: The Chunky Chef
Rich and velvety, this creamy tomato and basil soup is perfect for a chilly night!
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Ingredients

  • 2 15- oz cans diced tomatoes
  • 1 10- oz can tomato sauce
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil finely chopped
  • 2 cloves large garlic minced
  • 1 Tbsp salt
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • 1 onion diced
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 4 cups chicken broth or vegetable stock to make it vegetarian
  • 2 cups Parmesan cheese shredded
  • For the Roux:
  • 3 Tbsp butter
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 cup heavy cream or half and half

Instructions

  1. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, garlic, onion, basil, salt, pepper, heavy cream and vegetable or chicken broth to your crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours (although it can be done on high for 2 hours as well). Stir occasionally and scrape down the sides (if you can).
  2. minutes before serving, transfer soup to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Return to crockpot.
  3. Make your roux by melting your butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Once butter is melted, add the flour and whisk until it's incorporated. Slowly whisk in the heavy cream until the cream is smooth and thickened.
  4. Add Parmesan cheese and roux to the crockpot and stir to combine.
  5. Cook for another 20-30 minutes. Cheese should be completely melted into the soup. Stir thoroughly before serving. Garnish with additional Parmesan cheese and basil if desired.

Garlic and Herb Cheese Stuffed Crescent Rolls

Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Author: The Chunky Chef
Buttery, rich, garlicky and full of fresh herbs and delicious mozzarella cheese
Print

Ingredients

  • 2 oz cans refrigerated crescent rolls 8
  • 8 pieces of string cheese halved across
  • 4 Tbsp butter melted
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 4 cloves garlic finely minced
  • 1 tsp minced fresh parsley
  • 1 tsp minced fresh basil

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a small bowl, combine melted butter with Italian seasoning, garlic, parsley and basil.
  3. Unroll crescent rolls and separate into triangles. Brush with garlic butter mixture, reserving some to brush on tops of assembled rolls. Place halved string cheese at widest end, and roll up (tucking in the edges to seal).
  4. Brush tops with more garlic butter.
  5. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned.

 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. It was amazing… so smooth, and depth of flavors – if you are thinking Campbell’s tomato soup, you are in the wrong universe! And the dunking, mopping rolls were wonderful. Thanks for the invite!

    Reply

  5. Love tomato soup and grilled cheese! I work in an elementary school and that’s the only thing on the menu that I buy, other than occasional pretzels or cookies. But your version with the crescent rolls takes it up another notch. Thanks for bringing to Fiesta Friday! 🙂

    Reply

    • Thank you so much for hosting Fiesta Friday! You’re welcome and I’ll definitely be participating weekly 🙂 I’m a huge tomato soup lover as well, although admittedly, in the past I usually reached for a can lol. Those cheese stuffed crescent rolls sure were tasty, and would be great with just about any soup 🙂

      Reply

      • Rice in the soup is an alternative way to make this soup gluten-free and thickening it at the same time. Also, instead of making a roux to get the extra richness of the heavy cream/half-n-half, and also in keeping it gluten-free, stir in 4 oz of cream cheese. I have family members that are gluten-free, and this recipe sounds divine! Want to use it, but stay away from those allergies. Thanks for sharing!

        Reply

    • Awwww, I’ve honestly been doing the same thing with your sticky chicken fingers! I just keep waiting until we use up all our meals on the current meal list, and man when it’s time to plan the next 2 weeks… guess what’s going on there 😉 Hope you LOVE them!

      Reply

  8. Your food photos are amazing! Bravo! The tomato soup looks delicious — I make mine by roasting canned tomatoes first and then simmering them with the rest of the ingredients. I’ll top my soup next time with Parmesan, looks insanely good!
    Sharon @ savormania recently posted…vegetarian paellaMy Profile

    Reply

    • Thank you so much!!! Food photography is harder than I thought it would be, but a lot of fun 🙂 Ooooh I bet roasting those tomatoes first adds so much flavor 😀 I’ll have to try that next time!

      Reply

    • Thank you!! Tomato soup ranks up there with my favorite soups, and ohhhhh girl those stuffed crescent rolls are soooooo cheesy 😀 I may have eaten entirely too many lol

      Reply

    • Thank you SO SO much Kacey!! I’ve always loved photography, although food photography is certainly more challenging than I EVER thought it would be. I mean it’s just food right?! And girl, your photography skills are pretty awesome btw 🙂

      Reply

  28. I’ve got this recipe in the slow cooker right now! Just wondering if the roux is entirely necessary or can I skip that?

    Can’t wait to try this 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi, The instructions (recipe) says to add the cream at two different times. Can you tell me what you did?

      Reply

      • Hi Heidi 🙂 There is cream in the initial part of the soup that goes into the slow cooker, and cream in the roux that you add the last 30 minutes of cooking. Heavy cream is listed twice in the recipe ingredients (once for soup, and once for the roux).

        Reply

  30. I am wondering if anyone has ever frozen this soup? I would love to make it and freeze some small batches for my mother in law. It looks scrumptious!

    Reply

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