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Instant Pot Creamy Tomato Pesto Soup
Good morning from Charleston, SC!! Mornings are much more challenging coming from Denver where it’s two hours earlier. It’s 8am here which means, if your brain is working and you can do math (unlike me), it’s 6am in Denver. I’m suppose to workout soon before our day gets started, but I’d rather sit here and let my coffee set in. There’s some hard proof that I’m old. When I use to wake up at 6am, I felt like I was ready to conquer the world. Now I wake up and look like I’ve aged 8 years and my face is screaming for an eye mask. Aging is so fun.
Speaking of aging and trying to do it gracefully, I’m getting another profractional done on Thursday. Which means I won’t be able to leave my house until Sunday since my face will be a 1970’s horror film. How fun. When your parents and everyone in your entire life tells you not to pick at your face when you’re younger, YOU NEED TO LISTEN, YOU F*CKING IDIOT. Because it will come back to haunt you at some point and you’ll have to go to drastic measures to turn back time while having no friends because no one can stand to look at your bloody face.
How much does this conversation make you want to eat tomato soup?
This trip to Charleston to visit my girlfriends was much needed. I don’t get to see them very often since we are all over the country. But now that it’s such a short trip, I feel like we aren’t seeing much of Charleston…we’re just eating it. So much eating. Whenever I travel with my husband, we always do things because he can’t sit still. But when I’m with my girlfriends, we pretty much only think about food and working on our computers. I know that sounds suuuuupes lame, because it is, but it’s so fun to hang out with other women who have a similar job to me. I usually just spend most of my time sitting solo in my home with my bloody sketch face. But when I’m with these ladies, we get to brainstorm ideas and encourage each other to keep moving, even through self doubt. Women empowering women are pretty much the best.
But anywho, I need to get back to hanging out with them because I already head home tomorrow. And have to spend a few hours in Baltimore. What’s Baltimore like? More so, what’s the Baltimore airport like? Anything good? Is it sketch? Can I be fed and entertained for a few hours while I’m stuck there? Give me the deets because all I know about Baltimore is that it’s where the crime from season 1 of Serial in the Adnan Syed case occurred. That’s literally all I know about Baltimore. Yes, I know, I suck.
Instant Pot Creamy Tomato Pesto Soup
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 2 (28 ounce) cans of whole, peeled San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 (16 ounce) bag of frozen cauliflower
- 1 (32 ounce) container of chicken bone broth
- 3 tablespoons basil pesto (I used this dairy-free brand, but you can also make your own) plus extra for garnish
- 1–2 teaspoons salt (to taste)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- basil leaves, for garnish
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in an instant pot, secure the lid, close off the pressure valve and press the Soup button and press down to 15 minutes.
- Once it is done cooking, release the pressure valve with a natural release or a quick release. Once you remove the lid, use an immersion blender to blend the soup until completely smooth. Taste to see if the soup needs any extra salt or pepper.
- Garnish the soup with extra basil extra and basil leaves!
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Oh, Hi! I’m Juli.
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63 thoughts on “Instant Pot Creamy Tomato Pesto Soup”
Do you think this would turn out ok in a slow cooker? Haven’t invested in an instant pot yet!
yes!
Just this past Sunday I was wishing for a good IP tomato soup recipe because my boyfriend was craving tomato soup and I forbid him from Campbell’s! Now, here it is! Thanks!
i got you, CC!
The addition of cauliflower is genius, more veggies although hidden!!
and it makes it super creamy!! love adding cauliflower to soups for that reason instead of having to use heavy cream!
Can’t wait to try these recipes
thanks Anna! hope you like them!
You need to check out the first degree podcast! They interview people one degree away from violent crimes. THE BEST
thanks for the recommendation! adding it to my list now!
Think you can make it without pesto and just throw in a bunch of basil with a splash of olive oil in place of it?
you can do whatever you want! i haven’t tried it that way. it won’t be exactly the same so just keep that in mind. the pesto i used includes basil, cashews, pine nuts, olive oil and salt so it definitely brings a bit more flavor than just basil and olive oil
BWI is pretty solid. They have a gym and a designated walking “trail” within the airport. There’s also a Silver Diner in there, which is a small-ish local chain that has gluten-free options.
that’s sweet!! thanks for the recommendation Cas! heading to Silver Diner today when I land!
Can you let me know the cooking times if I did this in a slow cooker instead? Thanks!
you know, i can’t say for sure since i haven’t made it in a crockpot but i’m sure around 4 hours would work!
I am totally making this! I don’t know why every year I forget that we basically have 3 weeks of fall and then right into winter we go! Love you Colorado! Haha. And tomato soup is life.
agreed!
Juli! This recipe is amazing. Thank you so much!
awesome!! so glad you liked it!
I’m pre-obsessed with this recipe. Can not wait to make it this weekend! I am well on my way to figuring out how much cauliflower is too much to eat every day because it is so versatile!
i feel the same way haha. i could eat it with every meal!
Me again with the review now that I’ve eaten it. This is AMAZING. I made it as is and didn’t even need to adjust seasoning, it was perfect. I will eat anything with cauliflower and pesto involved, so I knew I’d probably like it. But I have never enjoyed tomato soup- maybe because it never tasted like this. So much better than a can for not that much effort.
Now I want to see how it freezes so I can make it ahead!
yaaaasssss!! so glad you loved it!
I have an electric pressure cooker wich is essentially an insta pot. I don’t have the “soup” button just time and low or high pressure. What do you think it would covert to time wise? Also, just bought your air fryer and have done tons of stuff in it. I love it!!! More recipes please! ????
you know, i’ve only ever used an instant pot so it’s hard for me to say. i’m wondering if 10 min on high pressure on your electric one would work? i just can’t say for sure. and i definitely have more air fryer recipes coming your way in the future!
hi, do you think that can I use same quantities but with fresh tomatoes, fresh cauliflower, fresh basil, fresh garlic, etc? And a regular pot? I don´t have the not fresh ingredients! TYVM
I think I´m going to enjoy that!
yes!
Hi Juli! Do you drain the tomatoes or just throw em all in there?
Making today. 🙂
throw it all in there!
Hi! Made this recipe the poor man way (slow cooker + regular blender) and it turned out FABULOUS. Little bit more time consuming this way but the end result was delicious!! Used the slow cooker on 4hrs on high for anyone else looking to try it that way!
hahahah poor man way. thanks for sharing your slow cooker experience. so glad it turned out that way too!
This recipe was fantastic!!! You were right, the cauliflower does make it really creamy! And the best part, it was so easy to make!! My husband loved it as well and he had no idea there was cauliflower in it. Thank you for the wonderful recipe, this will be a staple this winter.
awesome!! so glad to hear you liked it Breanna!
It’s official….you’ve ruined all other tomato soup. So freaking easy with the simplest ingredients. And pesto?! Never in my life thought to add pesto to tomato soup. You evil genius, you. So. Damn. Delicious.
haha so glad you liked it Allison!
This soup is fantastic! I LOVE tomato soup. It’s my absolute favorite and I had been really craving some but had been wishing for a lighter version of every recipe out there. The addition of the cauliflower is perfect. This soup will be going into the regular rotation from now on. Thanks so much for the great recipe!
awesome!! so glad you loved it Rachel!
I made this yesterday for a a group of 10 women. It was a hit! I have some frozen cauliflower packets that are 12 ounces each. I initially added the suggested 16 ounces but wanted my soup thicker so I added more cauliflower for a total of 2 entire packs. It was perfect consistency for me. I also added one extra tablespoon of pesto for a more robust kick.
I also bought an air fryer, and it is a game-changer. You have never led me wrong!
Thank you, Juli!
awesome!! glad you liked the recipe!! more pesto is never a back thing! and i’ll definitely have more air fryer recipes coming!
This was the best tomato soup recipe I’ve ever made !! I also sautéed some onions and garlic with olive oil before I put in all of the ingredients and it gave it some nice flavor . Thanks for sharing !!!!! I will 100% be making this my go to tomato soup recipe.
yayyyyy!! so glad you loved the recipe Emily!
Made this for my family as part of our festive Halloween dinner. Didn’t vary from the recipe at all. Loved it! My husband and I agreed it reminded us of Panera Bread’s tomato soup. Thanks so much! The cauliflower in it is brilliant!
yay!! glad you loved it Rebecca!
Looking for your review of the instant pot and which one you ended up actually going with.
i have a link to the instant pot i use in this post! and i love it!
I made this last night for the family and it was delicious! If you’re looking for a non dairy but traditional tomato soup, this is it! Thanks Juli for posting a feel good soup!
awesome!! so glad you loved it Jennifer!
This soup is so F-ing good, OMG! 🙂 Thank you!
yay!! glad you liked it Erika!
So easy and delicious!!I have made this two times in less than a week! My entire family loved this soup… my family includes 2 lovely but picky kids. Made it for the second time tonight for my husband that just had wisdom teeth removed yesterday! Thank you.
awesome!! glad it hear it kristy!
What are people pairing with the soup? I’m a hearty protein kind of guy and like tomato soup, but going strict paleo soon and so grilled cheese is out of the question : )
add some meat on top! roasted chicken, seasoned steak or even shrimp!
I made this yesterday. So so good! You don’t even miss the cream.
glad you liked it Denise!
This was a hit! I added Chong red pepper flakes to give it that Kick! I also used Broth Masters Bone broth. I used a 16oz pack then added some water… it’s pretty thick broth.
Husband and parents loved it. In fact my mom is making this for her sewing group next week.
Check Chone out, I found him at a local farmers market. Truly a favorite.
https://www.chonehotsauce.com/store/Hand-Ground-Hot-Pepper-Flakes-c24895165
glad you liked the recipe Cynthia!
Just made this, exactly as written, for my meal prep lunches this week. SO simple and massively flavorful!!!! Threw in some cooked chicken to make it a meal. Wish I had been making this all winter long, but it will be bookmarked for many future meals. You made magic happen again, Juli!
I might add more cauliflower next time for a thicker soup, but wouldn’t change anything about the flavor. God I love pesto.
woooohoooo! so glad you liked it Sarah!
Made this today. Delicious!
woot woot! glad you liked it Mallory!
Love the addition of pesto and cauliflower rice! Didn’t tell my family and they didn’t notice. Win!
★★★★