Tomato Soup with Feta
In need of some cozy comfort food? Try our Tomato Soup with Feta to warm you up from the cold winter nights ahead!
Loaded with vegetables and high in protein, this Tomato Soup with Feta is a great addition to your weeknight dinner rotation. This soup recipe can even be made ahead and frozen to have on hand when you are feeling sick!
Tomato Soup with Feta Ingredients
- Olive oil
- Onions
- Celery
- Carrot
- Garlic cloves
- Balsamic vinegar
- Honey
- On the vine tomatoes
- Low sodium chicken broth
- Salt
- Feta
- Whole milk
- Basil
Ingredient Nutrition Benefits
Our Tomato Soup with Feta recipe is chock full of vegetables and good for you, high calorie ingredients! High calorie recipes are great for those who are dealing with unintentional weight loss or are having a hard time gaining or maintaining weight.
The olive oil, honey, and whole milk are all high calorie and have many nutritional benefits.
Whole milk provides calcium, phosphorus, and protein, all of which help improve bone density and muscle function. Olive oil is high in fat but has been found to be beneficial to our health. It also contains important nutrients like vitamin E and vitamin K.
Honey is a type of sugar so it is high in carbohydrates, making it a great high calorie ingredient. It is also low on the glycemic index, meaning that it raises blood sugar levels slower than regular white sugar.
Another health benefit to honey is that it has antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, so it is great for when you are sick!
Vegetable Nutrition Benefits
Let’s talk vegetables! Our Tomato Soup with Feta is better than other tomato soups because it includes more vegetables than other recipes! With carrots, onions, tomatoes, and garlic, this soup makes for a great way to get in your daily vegetables.
Did you know that tomatoes are actually considered a fruit? Since they flower before producing fruit, this puts them in the fruit category even though many people use them as a vegetable!
Tomatoes are a good source of vitamin C, potassium, and folate. They also contain the antioxidant lycopene, which can help reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer. Onions are also a great source of vitamin C and contain fiber as well!
Many vegetables contain fiber (that’s why they are such an important part of a healthy diet!) and carrots are very high in it! Carrots also contain beta carotene which can be converted into vitamin A in the body. Beta carotene has been linked to reducing the risk of many illnesses including heart disease.
Our next vegetable topic in our Tomato Soup with Feta is garlic! Garlic is a delicious addition to any savory meal and there are many different things you can do with it like make garlic paste for toast or even roast it and spread it like butter!
Garlic contains many nutrients including vitamin C, B6, and manganese. These nutrients and other sulfur compounds in garlic make it a widely used medicinal vegetable that has been used to treat illnesses for generations.
Flavor!
The rest of our ingredients in our Tomato Soup with Feta help add flavor and depth to the dish! Feta adds a great bite of saltiness, while the balsamic vinegar helps give it a deep sweet vinegary taste. And our soup wouldn’t be complete without the addition of basil to bring that fresh herby taste!
High calorie recipes are important to help those struggling with gaining or maintaining weight, and making them good for you with beneficial nutrients is even more important! This soup is high in fiber which can help with keeping you feel full longer and helps your digestive system.
Try out this soup next time you are sick to get a boost of vitamin C and nutrients, or just on a cold night to warm you up!
To learn more about vegetables and fiber, check out this article from The Geriatric Dietitian!
What to Eat with Tomato Soup with Feta
Nothing goes better with tomato soup than grilled cheese of course! To up the protein even more, try adding deli meat like turkey or ham to your grilled cheese.
Another great option to go with our delicious Tomato Soup with Feta is a fresh, crusty piece of bread. Try a multigrain option to add more fiber! A large salad would also go well with this soup for a filling lunch.
Try out our Chicken Avocado Quesadillas with this soup to make a delicious high calorie meal!
How to Make Tomato Soup with Feta
Start by heating 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium pot. Add the diced onion and cook over medium heat until it is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Now add the celery, carrots, and garlic and an additional 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Next, continue to cook until the carrots and celery are softened, about another 10 minutes. Make sure you are stirring frequently while cooking the vegetables. Now add the balsamic vinegar to deglaze the pan, stirring and scraping the bits from the bottom of the pan.
Now you will add the honey, diced tomatoes and their juices, chicken broth, and ½ tsp of salt. Simmer the soup for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Blending the soup: One option is to blend the soup in a blender. Working in batches if needed, add the soup to a blonder and blend until completely smooth. Be careful while blending the hot soup and do not overfill the blender.
If you have an immersion blender you may blend the soup right in the pot until completely smooth!
Next, return the soup to the pot and mix in the whole milk, feta cheese, and basil. Taste the soup for seasoning and adjust as needed. Garnish your soup with additional feta cheese and basil leaves.
Let’s Check Out the Recipe!
Tomato Soup with Feta
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil divided
- 2 cups onions diced (about 3 small)
- 1 large celery stalk diced (1/2 cup)
- 3 cloves garlic minced (1 tbsp)
- 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp honey
- 12 small on the vine tomatoes diced
- 1.5 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 block feta crumbled
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup basil finely chopped
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium pot. Add the onion and cook over medium heat until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
- Add celery, carrots, and garlic with an additional 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Continue to cook until carrots and celery are softened, about 10 more minutes. Stir frequently.
- Add balsamic vinegar to deglaze the pan, scraping the bits from the bottom of the pan. Add honey, diced tomatoes and their juices, chicken broth, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- Simmer the soup for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- To blend the soup, you can use an immersion blender and blend in the pot.
- Or, working in batches, add the soup to a blender and blend until completely smooth. Return to the pot and mix in whole milk, feta cheese, and basil.
- Taste the soup for seasoning and adjust as needed. Garnish with additional feta cheese.