Take a bite out of this pizza soup and it tastes just like your favorite cupcake! Serve with crusty bread for an incredibly tasty meal.
Given our affinity for artisanal pizza recipes, I’m surprised it took us so long to come up with this idea. Pizza Soup! After all, who doesn’t want all the flavors of a top-notch pizza wrapped in one cozy bowl? The broth is flavored with pizza sauce, tomatoes, and a little parmesan to make it creamy. The toppings swim in it: peppers, garlic and mushrooms for a tasty pop that will surprise you with every bite. Serve it with garlic toast, grilled cheese, or just crusty bread and it’s a meal you’ll want to make again and again… and again. (We have already.)
Ingredients for pizza soup
This pizza soup was only a matter of time. Alex and I have been passionate about making artisan pizzas since we honeymooned in Italy years ago. We’ve spent a decade researching pizza dough recipes and learning from the pros, and you’ll see that pinnacle in our Next Level Pizza Margherita. So what better challenge than distilling all that know-how into a…soup?
This pizza soup is ideal when you want the pizza experience but without the fuss. The broth tastes so perfect, after a spoonful, you’ll exclaim, “This tastes like pizza!” (I promise. We did.) Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this healthy, whole food recipe:
- Pizza sauce
- Canned crushed tomatoes (if possible grilled)
- vegetable soup
- olive oil
- parmesan cheese
- Red onion, garlic, peppers, mushrooms
- Dried oregano and fennel seeds
Find your favorite pizza sauce or make it at home
Part of the pizza flavor in this recipe comes from… the pizza sauce! There are many natural pizza sauces these days. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Grab a jar of quality pizza sauce, organic if possible. Check the ingredients on the back to make sure there aren’t too many added sugars or preservatives.
- Or do it yourself! You can also make your own pizza sauce. Our Easy Pizza Sauce only takes 5 minutes in the blender. It’s sensational.
Fire roasted tomatoes add complexity
Here’s another tip for the best flavor in this pizza soup. Use fire roasted canned tomatoes! Fire roasted tomatoes are canned tomatoes that have been roasted over an open flame. It chars the outside easily, softening the flavor unlike most canned tomatoes straight out of the can.
Fire roasted tomatoes are sold by several different brands and have become popular in grocery stores throughout the United States. If you can’t find them, you can substitute any good quality tomatoes you can find.
Fennel seeds impart a meaty flavor
Finally, don’t be tempted to leave out the fennel seeds! Fennel is a vegetable used raw or as dried seeds in recipes. You should be able to find them in the condiment section of your grocery store. Why is fennel seed so important? Well, it’s a spice used in sausages, so it’s reminiscent of meat. It gives this soup a meaty, hearty flavor that can’t be duplicated!
Variant of pizza soup: add mixed ingredients!
Want to add more “toppings” to this pizza soup? It’s easy to add more veggies to make this soup even heartier, or add protein. Here are some additional ideas:
- White beans (to add vegetable protein)
- spinach
- Chopped hot peppers
- Sliced black olives
What else would you add to this pizza soup?
What to serve with pizza soup
When you’ve made a pot of pizza soup, you know best what to serve with it! There are many ways to add accessories to make it a complete meal. It’s great for any time of the year, but especially fall or winter. Here are a few ideas:
This pizza soup recipe is…
Vegetarian and gluten free.
The description
Take a bite out of this pizza soup and it tastes just like your favorite cupcake! Serve with crusty bread for an incredibly tasty meal.
- 1 Red onion
- 4 Garlic cloves
- 1 green pepper
- 1 Red pepper
- 2 medium portobello mushroom caps
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 15 ounces Pot of Pizza Sauce (or Easy Pizza Sauce)
- 281 ounce fire roasted crushed tomatoes
- 1 pint (4 cups) Vegetable soup
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese and more for garnish
- Fresh basil for garnish (optional)
- 1/2 Recipe Homemade Croutons, Crust Bread, Garlic Bread, or Garlic Toast for Serving (optional)
- Chop the onion. Chop the garlic. Dice peppers. Drain the mushroom caps and cut into small pieces.
- In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, mushrooms and peppers and sauté for 4 minutes until translucent. Add ½ teaspoon Kosher salt, garlic, oregano, fennel, and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant and vegetables are tender, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the pizza sauce, the canned tomatoes and their liquid, and the vegetable stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in cheese and simmer another 5 minutes until melted. Taste and add additional kosher salt if needed.
- Serve hot topped with homemade croutons, extra parmesan and fresh basil leaves (or simply serve with crusty bread or a gluten-free bread substitute).
- Category: Soup
- Method: Cook
- Kitchen: Soup
- Diet: vegetarian
More soup recipes… and pizza recipes!
When pizza and soup meet… a treat! Here are a few more of our favorite soup and pizza recipes:
