Easy Instant Pot Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons
This easy instant pot tomato soup with grilled cheese croutons is the perfect comfort meal for a cold winter's night. Cooking it in the Instant Pot gives it a rich, delicious and creamy flavor that will make everyone think it has been slow cooking all day. Enjoy it as a main course for dinner with the grilled cheese croutons and take the leftovers for lunch the next day!
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Now that the holidays are over, winter can really seem to drag on here in Maine. The cold, dark days can get a little gloomy. One of my favorite ways to warm everyone up is by making homemade soup for dinner. Soup and sandwich night is always a hit and I have at least a dozen favorite soup recipes that I rotate through during the cold, snowy months here. Last night I made the kid's favorite Easy Instant Pot Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese. I love making soups in the Instant Pot as they always have such decadent flavor, yet are simple to make.
What is in the Instant Pot Tomato Soup?
There are several ingredients in the soup, but it comes together quickly! You will need:
- Butter
- Onion
- Celery
- Spinach
- Parsley
- Thyme
- Italian Seasoning
- Oregano
- Brown Sugar
- Garlic Salt
- Salt & Black Pepper
- Garlic
- Diced Tomatoes
- Stewed Tomatos
- Tomato Puree
- Tomato Paste
- Vegetable Broth
- Heavy Cream
What else do I need to make the Soup?
Instant Pot: Of course you will need an Instant Pot! I love my Instant Pot so much that I recently purchased a second one that is bigger and I have used both of them at the same time on several occasions. The second one was especially handy over the holidays. However, I used my 6 quart one for this recipe.
Immersion Blender: I have a KOIOS 4 in 1 Handheld Immersion Blender that I absolutely love! I found it on Amazon last year and use it frequently!
How do I make the Soup in the Instant Pot?
I just love using the Instant Pot because it is so easy to make delicious recipes in it! For the tomato soup, there are just a few simple steps. First, turn the setting to Sauté and melt the butter in the bottom of the Instant Pot. Then, add in the chopped celery and onion and sauté for about 5 minutes, until veggies have softened. Next, add the spinach leaves and parsley and sauté until wilted.
Now, add the fresh thyme, vegetable broth, stewed, diced and pureed tomatoes, tomato paste and 2 cups of water. Stir this mixture until the tomato paste has melted. Then, add the Italian seasoning, oregano, brown sugar, garlic salt and black pepper. Stir well to blend all ingredients.
Place the lid on the Instant Pot and make sure the pressure valve is set to 'SEALING'. Press the SOUP setting on your Instant pot, let the pressure build and soup to cook. (While the soup is cooking, make the croutons). When the timer finishes counting down to zero, allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes. Then, do a quick release, by turning the pressure valve to 'VENTING' - making sure you use a pot holder or oven mitt to turn the valve. When all the pressure has been released, and the float valve is down, remove the lid to the Instant pot, and stir the soup. Stir in the cream and minced garlic. Use an immersion blender to blend soup until it is a smooth and creamy texture (this may also be done in small. batches with a regular blender). Serve warm with grilled cheese croutons.
How do I make the Grilled Cheese Croutons?
These delicious croutons are simply a grilled cheese sandwich cut into crouton sized pieces! I get a little "fancy" and make a garlic butter concoction to spread on the outside of the bread. I also used shredded Colby Jack cheese to make them because that is what I had on hand, but you can use whatever kind of cheese you enjoy most!
Easy Instant Pot Tomato Soup
Equipment
- Immersion Blender
Ingredients
For the Soup:
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 large onion peeled and chopped
- 3 celery stalks washed and sliced
- 1 cup spinach leaves finely chopped
- ½ cup Italian flat leaf parsley finely chopped
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon ground oregano
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon garlic salt
- 1 Tablespoon black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 14.5 ounce cans of diced tomatoes
- 2 14.5 ounce cans of stewed tomatoes
- 1 28 ounce can of tomato puree
- 1 6 ounce can of tomato paste
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the Croutons:
- 6 Tablespoons butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- ½ teaspoon minced garlic
- 6 slices bread
- 1 ½ cups Shredded Colby Jack cheese
Instructions
TO MAKE THE SOUP:
- In the bottom of the Instant pot with the setting on 'SAUTE' melt 1 Tablespoon of butter.
- Add the chopped onion and celery. Sauté until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Next, add the finely chopped spinach and parsley. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and cook until wilted.
- Stir in the fresh thyme, vegetable broth, stewed tomatoes, tomato puree, tomato paste and water. Stir well until tomato paste is melted into soup.
- Then, add the Italian seasoning, oregano, brown sugar, garlic salt and black pepper. Stir well to blend all ingredients.
- Place the lid on the Instant Pot and make sure the pressure valve is set to 'SEALING'.
- Press the SOUP setting on your Instant pot, let the pressure build and soup to cook. (While the soup is cooking, make the croutons).
- When the timer finishes counting down to zero, allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes.
- Then, do a quick release, by turning the pressure valve to 'VENTING' - making sure you use a pot holder or oven mitt to turn the valve.
- When all the pressure has been released, and the float valve is down, remove the lid to the Instant pot, and stir the soup.
- Stir in the cream and minced garlic.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the soup until it is a smooth and creamy texture. (This can also be done in small batches in a regular blender)
- Serve warm with grilled cheese croutons.
TO MAKE THE CROUTONS:
- In a small bowl, combine the softened butter, olive oil, garlic salt, and smashed garlic.
- Blend all together, and spread the butter mixture on one side of each slice of bread.
- In a non-stick skillet, place the bread, buttered side down, and sprinkle ½ cup of cheese on the bread.
- Place another piece of bread, buttered side up on top of the cheese.
- Cook the grilled cheese until golden brown on both sides.
- Remove grilled cheese from skillet and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Cut grilled cheese into large crouton size pieces and serve on the side or on top of the soup.
Nutrition
So Tell Me...
How do you survive the long, dark days of winter? What is your favorite comfort food for a cold night? Do you have an Instant Pot? If so, what do you enjoy cooking in it?
Thank you so much for stopping by. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below. Have a great week!
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