Condensed soup doesn’t have to be boring! Easily dress up a can of tomato soup (like Campbell’s) with ingredients you have in your pantry.
Today, I’m presenting you with a recipe that was truly born out of my college-student status (looking for more of these? Make sure to check out my Healthified Boxed Mac and Cheese recipe!). As with many American children, I have been eating grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup since I could handle solid food. It’s convenient, easy, filling, and delicious.
But sometimes, it can be a bit boring. Let’s face it, it’s simply a can of tomato puree and milk or water, depending on your preference. After a year of to-go Campbell’s cups of soup, I decided that I could no longer consume this boring tomato stuff as is, so I gave it a serious makeover.
4.90 stars from 196 reviews
Featured Review
This is the only way I make tomato soup now. I end up having to make almost quadruple the recipe because everyone in my family of five go back for seconds and thirds. We usually pair it with fancy grilled cheeses made with Gouda or provolone and whatever is left after dipping I literally drink
Karen McDaniel
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Start by combining one can of tomato soup with a can full of milk, as you usually would. We’re not using water here. I usually use 1% milk, but if you aren’t calorie conscious and have it on hand, of course it would be even better with half and half or heavy cream.
Now here’s the fun part: add garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Taste and adjust. Let simmer for 10 minutes or so to release all that flavor.
Pour into bowls and top with a little bit of parmesan cheese and some fresh basil. Ta da! You are no longer eating boring old tomato soup.
If you’re really feelingadventurous, make some homemade sandwich bread for your grilled cheeses. I used such bread for the sandwiches in these pictures.
If you make this, it would mean the world to me if you’d rate and review! It helps other people find this recipe.
You can also view this recipe as a step-by-step web story here.
4.90 stars from 196 reviews
Get the Recipe:How to Dress Up a Can of Tomato Soup
Prep Time: 5 minutes mins
Cook Time: 10 minutes mins
Yield: 2 servings
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Condensed soup doesn't have to be boring! Easily dress up a can of tomato soup (like Campbell's) with ingredients you have in your pantry.
Ingredients
- 1 10 3/4 oz can tomato soup
- 10 3/4 oz milk or heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- Parmesan cheese
- Fresh basil
Instructions
In a saucepan, combine tomato soup and 1 can full of milk of choice or heavy cream.
Add garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper and let sit on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes.
Pour into bowls and top with parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
Cuisine: American
Course: Dinner
Author: Chelsea Cole
Calories: 644kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 57g, Saturated Fat: 35g, Cholesterol: 209mg, Sodium: 1268mg, Potassium: 1085mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 14g, Vitamin A: 3015IU, Vitamin C: 23mg, Calcium: 141mg, Iron: 2mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @aducksoven on Instagram or tag #aducksoven.
Main Dishes Soup30 Minutes or Less
originally published on Jul 6, 2011 (last updated Feb 17, 2024)
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139 comments on “How to Dress Up a Can of Tomato Soup”
Leave a comment »
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Seasons01 — Reply
This worked so well… I love the more mature Campbells soup! Everyone loved it!
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Chelsea — Reply
I’m so glad to hear that!!!
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Christin — Reply
Thank you very much. This improved my soups so much.
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Jeffrey Truxell — Reply
This gave me a huge insight to tomato soup. Only problem is, there is a bit too much sodium in it.
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sdgwkr — Reply
I made this minus the milk, fresh basil, and onion powder. I used dried basil and some oregano. Instead of cayenne I used a bit of habanero hot sauce. I hadn’t looked up this recipe yet I just went with gut instinct…it was very good, would be better with milk or cream.
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Madison Reese — Reply
I honestly think this is my first time every reviewing a recipe… this tomato soup is a HIT. I never cared much for tomato soup but it’s essential with grilled cheese and I could eat this recipe plain all day. (I used all heavy cream, no milk)
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Krysten — Reply
This was amazing and a great, inexpensive way to dress up a childhood classic. I also added some herbed croutons to mine just to enhance those Italian seasonings even more and it was perfection. Extremely pleased with this. Thank you!
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Chelsea — Reply
So glad you enjoyed it! The crouton addition sounds delicious!
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Sharon — Reply
This tasted somewhat like pizza sauce, but I still loved it. And it’s a great starter into experimenting with tomato soup. I just recently acquired a taste for it, but it was acquired at a nice restaurant, so I knew a plain old can of soup wasn’t going to do it. This is a perfect solution and even my kids liked it.
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Becky — Reply
Good. I only used half the amount of spices and it was perfect. Yum.
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Shirlie sweet — Reply
I added a half can of diced tomatoes.. also used half milk and half cream. Delicious!!
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Nonni — Reply
Tried this recipe and loved it. Next time I would put a little less cayenne, but still thought it was great!
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Tara — Reply
I have always used mill instead of water, but the addition of slices and parmesan add so much flavor. Thank you.
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Chelsea — Reply
So glad you enjoyed!
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JoBeth — Reply
I had already added water, but next time I will use half and half. I just eyeballed the spices and probably used less. I used seasoning salt and subbed paprika for the cayenne. I also added some parm to the soup as it was heating. This was a great way to make canned soup taste so much better. I had it with a bacon grilled cheese sandwich – yum.
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Chelsea — Reply
This sounds so yummy, JoBeth!!!
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Vera — Reply
Would full fat coconut milk work with this?
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Chelsea — Reply
That should be fine! Flavor might be a little different, but that’s it.
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renee — Reply
maybe a little curry powder instead of the Italian herbs?
Toasted pita dippers?
Mmmmmm
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Briana — Reply
Loved this upgrade to canned soup! Totally made it taste like homemade, and it was incredibly quick and easy! Glad to have this recipe in my back pocket for this winter!
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Sharon — Reply
Definitely enjoyed this ‘adult’ version of tomato soup. It looked pretty with the fresh shaved parmesan and basil leaves. It’s a winner.
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Chelsea — Reply
I’m so glad, Sharon!
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Barb — Reply
I am not a big fan of tomato soup but my son loves it. He suggested looking up a recipe to dress it up a bit so I would enjoy it more. I used heavy cream and this was absolutely delicious. I like the crouton idea and may have to try that the next time. Thanks for a great recipe!
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Chelsea — Reply
I’m so glad you and your son enjoyed it, Barb!
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Leslie J — Reply
I just made this with grilled cheese, ham , n tomato sandwiches. The soup was great! Followed the recipe but did add a teaspoon of sour cream to it also. Wonderful!!
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Jim C — Reply
`I’ve always used milk instead of water. And I add just half a can because I really like a nice thick creamy soup. This combination of spices was great, except that I hesitate to add salt, as soups in a can tend to have a lot of salt already. Another little dress-up is to stir in just some ground basil by itself. For some reason, the combo of the basil and tomato soup is really great. When I want to be more of an adult, I have used seasoned croutons in it. If I want to go back to when I was not nearly as mature as I am now ;-), I add Cheese-Its. And of course, you must have a grilled cheese sandwich with it!
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Amey — Reply
Is there a dairy free alternative?
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Cheryl — Reply
Coconut milk is dairy free.
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Donna — Reply
We had a tomato soup taste test tonight with our grilled cheese. I made this recipe and bought Panara’s tomato soup. My husband loves this one the best!!
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
This is the best compliment I’ve ever gotten!!!!!!!
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Alexis Ketron — Reply
WOW!
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Cheryl — Reply
That would make the soup creamier and dairy free. I ordered from a restaurant yesterday a coconut curry tomato soup. It was bomb.
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S — Reply
I just made this right now. I didn’t have any onion powder but I used the rest of the spices listed and the soup is AMAZING
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!!
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Cass — Reply
Great recipe! I cut down the cayenne pepper by about half, it’s a bit too spicy for my kids. But this is my go-to recipe and we’ve been having a lot more grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup for lunches!
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
Thank you so much Cass!!!!
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Emily — Reply
I LOVE tomato soup. I was excited to dress up my can of soup for lunch today. I was disappointed. I felt like after adding all of this, I couldn’t even taste the soup! I even halved the amount of spices it called for thinking it just seemed like a lot. The Italian seasoning overpowered everything and after that shock came the cayenne at the back of my throat. In my opinion, the combination of spices didn’t work well together here.
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Kilmer — Reply
The creamer to soup ratio was too much and really more white than red. I want to be adding more tomato soup to make it look like tomato soup.
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Margaret — Reply
I added some chorizo diced up too and it was soo yummy.
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Tammy — Reply
Was really good tonight after a very cold day here in Indiana along with our Grilled cheese tonight, chips and salsa. 😋
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Jay — Reply
Not fancied up but more interesting for kids. Cook alphabet noodle in salted water, drain, and add to soup while it’s warming. If you want regular size alphabets serve right away. If you want large soft alphabets let stand and they will absorb liquid. Kids love them! If you care to add other pasta you can do the same. I would add tiny little meat balls too if serving to adults with a splash of red wine. Fresh parm shaved on top! I like tomato taste too much to add spices. Each to his own taste though.
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Denielle — Reply
Will this work with soy milk?
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
I haven’t tried that, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t! If you try, please report back!
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David Graham — Reply
This is an outstanding dress up to an old favorite, what a great find.
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Betty — Reply
Very tasty, next time going to cut the cayenne in half. Little too spicy, but really really good. Recipe is a keeper
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Brodie — Reply
I think the spice in this recipe is really overpowering. I halfed the amount of spice and still found it overpowering (and this is coming from someone that likes strong flavours). Anyone into more mild flavours I would recommend quartering the seasoning if not decreasing it even more. This wasn’t just my opinion but shared with a few other people as well.
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Richard T Barrett — Reply
I liked the recipe! Added a bay leaf, ditalini noodles and carrots.
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Katie Pollock — Reply
Such an easy way to make a can of soup a bit better! Perfect with a grilled cheese!
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Kacie-Rose Medeiros — Reply
Love the dress-up! My kiddo enjoyed it! W
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Zach — Reply
absolutely fabulous, loved the mix of spices, works really well, definitely jazzed up the dish 😁
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Kristina — Reply
Awesome! ❤
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Abiola — Reply
This was so good! I did not like the tomato soup smell before, but after adding all the spices it smelled AMAZING. Also, I’m a teen so the fact that this was super easy made it very enjoyable. And, it tasted spectacular with grilled cheese!
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
I’m so glad to hear this Abiola! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review after making it.
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Chris White — Reply
Hey Chelsea, this is exactly what I was looking for! My family actually loved it. (No peanut butter or any other strange ingredients… lol.
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
Oh that’s so great!!!
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kulapono — Reply
thank you for recipe! University of Oregon?
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
Yep! I wrote this while I was a student, way back in 2010 🙂 Go Ducks!
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Brandon Lee — Reply
This was amazing…. I added some cheddar cheese (shredded) and it’s the best tomato soup I ever had. Definitely go with heavy cream or whole milk.. it makes a difference too!
Enjoy you won’t regret it
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
Oh my gosh, so glad Brandon!
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Catherine — Reply
I’m a college student and this was so easy and fun to make! I had it with grilled cheese and it was so delicious!
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
Aw yay! I wrote this recipe as a college student 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed it Catherine, and thank you so much for taking the time to leave a rating and review.
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jazz miller — Reply
Honestly this is so good
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Romaxfer — Reply
I had never really tasted tomato soup. However, I bought a can of tomato soup just to try this recipe. Well…. I took the recipe and added some other things. Onion, pepper, garlic, 2 stalk of celery, and a small zucchini. Wasn’t sure what to expect but, I did like it. It was a bit sweet and with a grilled cheese sandwich (made it using a waffle iron and it came out good) side the sweet and saltiness was ok. One can and one can of water gave me the serving for 3 people $1.98 well spent 😀
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Maia — Reply
My 5 year old and I thoroughly enjoyed this recipe!!
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Jon — Reply
I literally looked up something just like the title of this recipe and boom. Perfection. Can’t get much better than this.
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Amanda Davenport — Reply
This recipe is so easy and truly elevates regular tomato soup! Thanks for the quick fix to an everyday staple.
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gina — Reply
made boring tomato soup worth buying again, thank you for sharing.
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Jennifer — Reply
So delicious. Game changer!! Thank you!!
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Melanie — Reply
This was terrific! I was at my mother’s, and my brother wasn’t feeling very well. My mom had her hands tied with work, so I decided to whip us up some grilled cheese and tomato soup- classic. Normally, I make my own tomato basil, but my mom only had a can of Campbell’s. So, I looked up online how I could make it taste a little more homemade, and this post popped up! Thanks for the tip, Chelsea! 🙂
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Mark T — Reply
This is the best tomato soup recipe I’ve ever had. I’m not a big fan of it to start with but I will be making this again real soon.
Thank you for sharing.-
Chelsea Cole — Reply
Oh I’m so glad to hear it Mark!!
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L.F. — Reply
This was super easy and delicious! I added a bit of curry and cumin to it and omitted the basil and Parmesan.
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Chelsea Cole — Reply
That sounds delish!
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Kathryn Houbre — Reply
I wanted the creaminess of half and half so I bought some fat-free. Simply delicious!
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Kathryn Houbre — Reply
By the way, aweet Lou’s in Ponderay ID has a grown up grilled cheese to pair with this:
Grilled Cheese For Grown Ups
Melted havarti and cheddar cheeses along with tomatoes, bacon, basil spread and mayo sandwiched between toasted sourdough bread-
Chelsea Cole — Reply
That sounds so yummy!!!
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Kaye — Reply
Excellent! I used scant measurements of souces and left out the cay. Pepper. It was rich and tadty.
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Saul Oviedo — Reply
Taste awesome!! Simple and delicious.
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Sarah K — Reply
It calls for 1/4 tsp of cayenne. That’s a lot of heat for 2 bowls of soup! Recommend 1/8 or 1/16. Otherwise, delicious.
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Kim Kemna — Reply
I have always loved Campbell’s tomato soup and grill cheese. I’m definitely going to try adding a little flavor to taste! Thank you 🙂
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Sarah v — Reply
Absolutely love this soup recipe! My family has this several times a month and the printout of your recipe has become a permanent fixture on my refrigerator 😂
I use 2% milk and omit the salt (with regular Campbell’s tomato soup it is salty enough). I’ve also found that the longer it sits and simmers, the more the spice flavors come out.
Thanks for the great recipe!
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Michael Patrick — Reply
Simple is best! This simple idea was delicious. It’s a keeper! Especially with a grilled cheese.
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C. Cruz — Reply
This recipe was delish! I added a 14oz can of crushed tomatoes to mine as well as half of a 6oz can of tomato paste and about 2.5-3 tsp of Italian seasoning and a bit more pepper than what the recipe called for. I then topped it off with some cheese & garlic croutons & some freshly grated parmesan cheese on top. I paired this with a grilled cheese and let me tell you my family loved it!!! I will for sure be making this again!!!
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Stephanie — Reply
So yummy! Will make again. Love this recipe, good mixture of the seasonings !
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Melissa — Reply
Wonderful!
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mark jablonski — Reply
Thank you, I love it. My kids do as well.
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Chris France — Reply
Haven’t made it yet. I’m still going to say this recipe has to be good. I love the ingredients mentioned. I like tomato soup. A twist is always a great out come. Either you like it or you don’t but still yet you try to make it better
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B — Reply
Great!!
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Mark Baynes — Reply
Awesome
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Carol — Reply
I’m an old gall. Been eating tomato soup for years. Loved this version!! Thanks.
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Nettie — Reply
This was GREAT!! (I Added 1/2 can of diced tomatoes and some diced sauteed onions.)
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Abigail — Reply
I made my kids some fun chicken noodle soup and a grilled cheese for lunch today. It looked so good I had to make a mom version!! This was delicious and I’m so glad I found it so quickly!!
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Deb — Reply
I just made this using fresh onion, garlic, Basil and heavy cream. I omitted the Italian seasoning and cayenne pepper. This was delicious and will be making this a lot this winter here in Minnesota. Thank you for the idea.
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Lisa — Reply
This really made my tomato soup taste like a full meal! Loved it. Thanks so much for the tips!
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Scott — Reply
A few simple seasonings turns an ordinary can of soup to a bowl of love!! Great recipe!!
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Vanessa — Reply
Thinking about the good ol days, I made a grilled cheese and can of tomato soup. The old can isn’t as good as I remember. A quick Google brought me here and I dressed up my soup, even though it is already out of the pot and into the serving bowl. Way to save the lunch!
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Mandy — Reply
My husband followed this recipe to make me soup while I’m absurdly sick and praise be it is the stuff of magic and miracles. My husband hates soup and after raving about how well it tasted I made him try it and even he paused to make a ‘wow’ face before slurping up a good bit!
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mark — Reply
Your advice is fantastic, I add a half small diced fresh tomato.
Thank you.
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Valerie — Reply
I’m looking to do the same.but want a tomato dill soup
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Dave — Reply
This was a great idea. Onion Garlic powder was a great addition and the basil and cheese topper was great.
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Jasper — Reply
It was great! Thanks for the seasoning help
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Lea — Reply
Delish! I added one clove garlic and sauteed onions!
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Candace — Reply
Delicious! Totally elevated the canned soup. Thank you.
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Dee — Reply
Way too salty and way too spicy. It was inedible for me.
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Katelyn — Reply
So good!! New go to recipe!
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Diane O. Maxwell — Reply
I grew up (way back in the 50s) having tomato soup made with milk. I always thought that this was the proper way to make it. When I saw your recipe I was shocked that people would need a recipe for creamy tomato soup. Your recipe made me look at the can to see how tomato soup is made from a can. I was surprised to see that water is added to the soup. As you can tell, I never read the soup label before.
Back to your recipe, I have never added spices to the soup so adding the spices you suggested made the soup more yummy.
Thank you for this easy recipe and thank you for my trip down memory lane. -
Disappointed Soup Enjoyer — Reply
The soup was way better without. I didn’t even add all the spices and still it made my throat burn from how many spices there was. I even another time tried just adding the garlic powder, and it was all I could taste. I really don’t recommend this recipe.
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Wally — Reply
Very good recipe.
I added a bit of red chili flakes for a little more heat.
Like you, I love grilled cheese. We made grilled cheese croutons to serve on top with the basil and parm.
Thank you! -
Carol haigh — Reply
Can you make pizza soup with canned soup ? If so plz tell me how
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charley — Reply
I definitely tripled most of the spices proportions but they’re great ideas that made the soup lovely!
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charley — Reply
Great soup! i def tripled some of the spices but the idea was great and made a lovely soup!
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Laura Strachan — Reply
An easy and delicious way of making canned tomato soup taste like homemade! I like to add a drizzle of EVOO, a cpl drops of balsamic and a sprinkle of feta occasionally for a Mediterranean twist 😋
Thanks Chelsea! -
Daniel Wolfe — Reply
Bless You.. This was very delicious… never had any tomato soup taste this good.. Almost ate it all myself…
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Dick — Reply
50 years ago I had a Tarascan soup in a Mexican village. I tried to re-create it a couple of days ago and it was bland and disappointing. I almost threw it out but decided to save it in the fridge.
Then I searched the web for ‘rescue tomato-based soup’ and this recipe was one of the hits. I tried it tonight by adding the spices in your recipe to my Tarascan soup (basically tomato/bean/chile puree) and it was marvelous. I did double your amounts. Thank You !!! -
Avery W — Reply
I love it but I think just a pinch of Cheyenne pepper would be better. I love the taste but then all I can taste is the spicy pepper. Good recipe tho!
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Emily — Reply
Thank you for sharing this very easy canned soup upgrade. I was SHOCKED at how good this turned out. Just a few seasonings and cream and my Campbell’s tasted like soup from a restaurant. I made this vegan with heavy plant cream and it was almost too rich, so I might do half plant milk/plant cream next time. THANK YOU!
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Elsie — Reply
I did not have milk so I added a Tbsp. of sour cream. Skipped the Italian so it would not taste like spaghetti sauce. Added low sodium Tajín, a Mexican
spice. Sprinkled parmesan as garnish. -
Kristin L — Reply
Thank you so much for this! It made the tomato soup AMAZING!!! Even my kids ate it, and asked for more. Making easy soup, super fast and yet super yummy is incredible!
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Karen McDaniel — Reply
This is the only way I make tomato soup now. I end up having to make almost quadruple the recipe because everyone in my family of five go back for seconds and thirds. We usually pair it with fancy grilled cheeses made with Gouda or provolone and whatever is left after dipping I literally drink.
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Jade — Reply
This recipe has potential — maybe it was made with exclusively grilled-cheese dipping in mind. But as is, the cayenne and salt is WAY too heavy handed in this recipe.
I halved the salt and used just under what was recommended for the cayenne, and it was still way too much.
The bites with the Texas toast I cooked up were slightly less abrasive, but still were too spicy for what many consider a childhood comfort meal.
Pinch of cayenne and no salt would have been much better.
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Carl — Reply
She does say season to preference and taste
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Carl — Reply
Amazing recipe. I like tomato soup again!
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neo ross — Reply
Tate’s absolutely amaze balls, a definite recommend!
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Tim Beasley — Reply
Wow! Made my mater soup 10 times better!….Reminds me of fancy Restaraunt soup…..Debanair
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Floyd Almond — Reply
Lip smacking good and gone is the FLAT tomato soup taste, I haven’t gotten around to the grilled cheese with this new soup yet, but it is next on the agenda.
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Lindsey T. — Reply
This recipe turned out delicious enough for me, but I have some slight feedback. The salt & black pepper overpowered everything else. Next time, I suggest 1/4 tsp salt & 1/8 tsp black pepper, or else just double everything except for the salt & pepper.
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Shirley — Reply
Easy to do
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Lucas O'Neil — Reply
Took my nice lil can soup dinner from ok to great!!! thanks for this!!
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Karla — Reply
Loved your recipe. Just finished making it just because i got a bad craving. And this cures my craving thank you !!
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krystal — Reply
This was such a super fun and tasty find for a boring meal!!
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Leslie — Reply
Loved it. Will never make boring tomato soup again.
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Jarmar Williams — Reply
Love this recipe
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Linda — Reply
I used this for stuffed cabbage
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M Moore — Reply
This was so good!
I’m not a soup person and my husband asked for tomato soup & a grilled cheese.
I was in a pinch- thanks for all the yummy ideas. It turned out delicious 🍋
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Rob Waye — Reply
LOVE IT!
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Tiff — Reply
Had some tinnned tomatoe soup to use (I always make my own). The boys enjoyed this with home made Parmesan Mozzarella loaf and potatoe wedges.
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Bill Gausman — Reply
I made it last night, and thought that it was excellent. Added a little parmesan from a shaker can, which seemed to add. Wife thought that there was too much Italian seasoning, so maybe next time, I’ll drop the amount by 1/3 or 1/2.
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Peggy Saucedo — Reply
This recipe was supreme!!!
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Susan — Reply
Made this with Walmart’s store brand gluten free tomato soup. It was amazing. I’m the only one gluten free in my family, and there is never a complaint when I make this soup with grilled cheese sandwiches or garlic toast for dipping.
4.90 from 196 votes (99 ratings without comment)
