Tomato Orzo Soup

There are loads of tomato orzo soups floating around online, but they all call for quite a bit of cream, butter, milk, and flour to thicken it. My amazing cousin Jill and my Aunt Julie sent me over this recipe and I modified it to fit my family's taste and needs. It is really one of the easiest soups to make and is my go-to meal in the fall because I always have the ingredients on hand. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do; it's a huge hit at our house.




First cook half a box, roughly 8 ounces (half of a pound), of orzo pasta according to package directions until al dente. The pasta general is done by the time the soup is ready so it ends up being perfect timing. If you don't have orzo on hand or if you have any gluten sensitivities, use any small grain or noodle, such as quinoa pasta, brown rice pasta, etc. Quinoa is quite tasty in this soup.

Grab your favorite bottle of marina sauce. I highly suggest Trader Joe's Tomato Basil, the flavors are incredible, but any will work here. You can easily use your own tomato sauce also. The bottle sizes of marinara vary, but roughly 26 oz will do the trick.

Pour the marina sauce into a pot with 5 cups of chicken or veggie broth (or water and bouillon) and heat on medium-low.

Add 1 cup of pumpkin puree. This sounds odd, but it adds an amazing depth of flavor. It also thickens the soup and bonus: it's a veggie!

As the soup continues to heat up add the basil (fresh or dry), red pepper flakes, salt, paprika*, and garlic powder.

* If you don't have paprika, you may use chili powder as a substitute. Paprika is made from a sweet pepper while chili powder is made from a spicy pepper, the flavor is a little different but adds a nice depth of flavor to the soup.

Once the soup is heated through, this will take about 10-15 minutes, add 1/2  cup of cream or half and half, whichever you have on hand. Feel free to use any cream that fits your family needs: coconut cream, canned coconut milk, soy, almond, etc. Once you add the cream remove from heat so it doesn't curdle.

The orzo should be done by now so drain the orzo and add to the soup. Stir to combine, serve and watch it disappear really fast. This two year old usually skips the spoon and just drinks it.

Orzo is a pasta that soaks up liquid very well. If you are storing the leftovers it will get really thick and you may need to thin it out with a bit of milk or broth. It still tastes great!

Serves 6-8

Tomato Orzo Soup

Ingredients:

8 ounces (half a box) orzo
1 jar (about 24-26 ounces) marina sauce
5 cups chicken or veggie broth/stock
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup cream or half and half (or any preferred non-dairy cream)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon of salt

Cook the pasta al dente according to the package directions. Combine the marina sauce and broth and heat on medium low. Add the pumpkin puree and stir until well combine. Add the red pepper flakes, paprika, garlic powder, basil, and salt. Once the soup is heated through, roughly 15 minutes, add the cream and stir in the cooked, drained Orzo. Bon appetite!