Rich, Creamy Eggplant Tomato Soup with plenty of fresh basil and garlic is a cozy bowl of comfort that your family is going to love!
This recipe is super easy and comes together in about 40 minutes. The best part? It makes lots of soup! So you can eat a bowl or two now and freeze the rest for the next time you need a warm, cozy, comforting bowl of soup in a hurry.
More Veggie-Packed Soups: Butternut Squash Soup with Pan-Fried Collards, One-Pot Kale and Bean Soup
Making Eggplant Tomato Soup
The eggplant in this soup makes it so satisfying! You could really serve this as an entree with a vegan grilled cheese or even just crusty bread to dip.
While the eggplant makes this soup hearty, the coconut milk adds a dash of creaminess that you are going to love.
This soup does have a mild coconut taste to it. If that's not your thing, you can use the same amount of non-dairy creamer or cashew cream in place of the coconut milk.
To start the soup, we're going to braise the eggplant.
DON'T PANIC! "Braise" is just a fancy way of saying "saute, then add liquid and simmer, covered."
So do that.
Once the braising time is up, add the rest of your ingredients to the pot. Simmer until everything softens and the house smells amazing.
The last step before you serve is to puree, and you have two options here:
- Use your immersion blender.
- Use an upright blender.
I definitely prefer the immersion blender for dishes like this, because you can puree right away. There's also less cleanup.
If you do use an upright blender, you have to let the soup cool before you transfer it to blend. Blending hot liquid is a recipe for a blender explosion. I want you to eat this soup, not spend your evening cleaning it off of the kitchen counter.
Once the soup is pureed, heat it back up, and it's' time to eat!
How to Freeze and Reheat Your Soup
Canning isn't the only way to preserve food! My Nani Dorothy's method for saving soups was always to freeze them. She used to tell us that "time stops in the freezer."
I'm not sure she was right about that, but these jars of eggplant tomato soup will keep in your freezer for about a year. Remember to date those jars!
Most soups defrost beautifully, and this one is no exception. To defrost, just pull the jars out the night before you want to eat the soup, and stick them in the refrigerator to thaw.
You can also thaw them on the countertop for a few hours, if you forget to pull them out the night before.
Once the soup thaws enough that you can get it out of your jars, transfer it to a saucepan, and warm it up on medium, stirring occasionally, until it's heated through.
I made a big batch of this cozy soup, saving some to eat this week and freezing a couple of pint-sized Mason jars full to save for later.
If you're going to store your soup in glass, make sure that you either use something heat-resistant, like a Mason jar, or let it cool before you transfer to your storage container. You don't want a shattered soup jar all over the counter and floor!
Creamy Eggplant Tomato Soup
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 medium eggplant - cut into 1/2" cubes
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 1 1/2 cup vegetable broth - divided
- 4 cloves fresh garlic - minced
- 6 plum tomatoes - chopped
- 1/2 cup full fat coconut milk - (See note for alternatives)
- 1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves - minced
- salt - to taste
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a soup pot or Dutch oven on medium high heat, and saute the eggplant and onion for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the broth, reduce the heat to medium-low, then cover and cook for 10 minutes more, or until the eggplant softens.
- Add the garlic, tomatoes, coconut milk, basil and the rest of the broth. Bring the mixture ot a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until heated through, about 5 minutes. Now, either transfer in batches to your blender (see note) or use an immersion blender to blend the soup until it's pretty smooth. The final texture depends on what you prefer in a creamy soup. Season with salt, and serve or store!
- You can serve immediately or freeze some of this soup to enjoy when tomatoes and eggplant are no longer in season (see note).
Notes
- About the coconut milk: This soup does have a mild coconut taste to it. If that's not your thing, you can use the same amount of non-dairy creamer or cashew cream in place of the coconut milk.
- About blending the soup: Are you using a regular blender? No problem! Just allow the soup to cool before you transfer it to the blender, so you don't have a soup explosion. A souplosion?
- About freezing the soup: If you're going to freeze this soup right away, make sure to let it cool before you transfer it to your glass jars. Very hot soup in a cold jar could cause the glass to shatter, and I don't want that for you!
Debbie
It was really good, although I have to say you really need the hot sauce, or add more salt. I made it for food prep lunches - and have been enjoying it for a week now! Thanks!
swathi
coconut eggplant tomato bisque looks delicious, thanks sharing with Hearth and Soul blog hop,pinning tweeting