The ultimate comfort meal, this cozy tomato pastina soup is so good even the kids will ask for more! Loaded with fresh veggies, this one-pot recipe is nutritious, delicious and an absolute must try meatless meal for a cold winter meal. So good!
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Why You'll love this recipe
- This soup is not only the ultimate delicious comfort food, it's also loaded with nutritious veggies. We blend sautéed carrots, leeks, crushed tomatoes, garlic to a smooth texture before letting the pastina cook in it. Such a great meatless soup for a cold evening.
- It's kid-approved! I even heard the expression "this soup is bomb"! Whether you serve it as is, with a grilled cheese, a few croutons, crusty sourdough bread, it'll be a hit!
- A good budget friendly, filling recipe to prep ahead to reheat for a quick dinner like my orzo soup, lemony white bean soup, tomato butternut squash soup or chickpea soup.
Key Ingredients and variations
- Pastina pasta: tiny little stars, this type of pasta automatically screams comfort food. You can technically use any kind of little pasta like orzo, acini di pepe, stelline, ditalini. They look very small dry, but they'll expand while cooking.
- Carrots: we're loading this soup with extra nutrients which carrots are loaded with.
- Leeks: if you've made any of my recipes, you know I love leeks and use them often in my cooking. I love the flavor and use them in place of onions, but a yellow onion is a perfect replacement too.
- Crushed tomatoes: made it easy on this one, crushed tomatoes are great, they won't have too much skin. Use good quality canned tomatoes for the best flavor.
- Broth: vegetable or chicken broth for this soup.
- Garlic & seasoning: fresh garlic cloves add a ton of flavor, and the seasoning is simple with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders.
- Fresh parmesan: this finishes the soup, giving it that little extra taking it to the next level of deliciousness.
How to make Tomato Pastina Soup
In large pot, heat up olive oil over medium high heat. Once hot, add chopped carrots, sauté stirring often for 4-5 minutes.
Turn heat down to medium, add a tad more oil and chopped leek. Continue sautéing for about 4 minutes, stirring often.
Add tomato paste and minced garlic, stir everything, cook everything for another 2 minutes.
Pour crushed tomatoes and all spices, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders. Stir everything well, scrapping all the bits at the bottom of pot, cook for a couple of minutes.
Add broth, turn the heat to medium high and bring to a low boil. Turn the heat down to medium low once boiling, add the lid and let the soup simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the veggies are soft.
Remove the lid, remove the soup from heat. Carefully blend the soup with an immersion blender until smooth by making circular, up and down motion.
Put the soup back on the heat to medium, add the pastina to the blended soup and cook per package instruction or until the pasta is fully cooked (7-10 minutes). Add the parmesan cheese, adjust salt and pepper, serve and enjoy!
More Soup Recipes
If you love soups check these out!
Tips
- If you like a little spice, add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the soup before blending it. Or your favorite hot sauce when serving the soup.
- If the soup feels too thick to your taste, you can add a little more broth or water once it's blended. Keep in mind that the pastina will absorb some of the liquid which is normal.
- Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container refrigerated for up to 5 days. You may have to add a little water when reheating. Reheat in the microwave or in pot on the stove.
- As always, adjust salt and pepper to taste. Same with the parmesan cheese.
- Try to use a good quality, fresh Parmigiano Reggiano if possible. The freshly grated parmesan adds a savory element to this sweet soup. I always keep a block of parmesan in my fridge to grate when needed, it's so flavorful, and it lasts for months refrigerated in a airtight container or baggie.
- You can definitely add any fresh herb if you wish, chopped parsley or basil would be delicious is this pastina soup.
frequently asked questions
Yes absolutely. But you might need to blend the soup in batches because adding hot content to a blender will make it get very hot. Use a large spoon to transfer the soup and a kitchen towel to handle the blender. Be careful not to burn yourself.
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Tomato Pastina Soup
Equipment
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4-5 carrots peeled and chopped
- 1 leek white part only, chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 4-5 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes 1 large can
- 2 quarts broth chicken or vegetable
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅔ cup pastina dry
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat up olive oil over medium high heat. Once hot, add chopped carrots, sauté stirring often for 4-5 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to medium, add a tad more oil and the chopped leek. Continue sautéing for about 4 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the tomato paste and minced garlic, stir everything, cook everything for another 2 minutes.
- Pour the crushed tomatoes and all the spices, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders. Stir everything well, scrapping all the bits at the bottom of the pot, cook for a couple of minutes.
- Add the broth, turn the heat to medium high and bring to a low boil. Turn the heat down to medium low once boiling, add the lid and let the soup simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the veggies are soft.
- Remove the lid, remove the soup from heat. Carefulyl blend the soup with an immersion blender until smooth by making circular, up and down motion.
- Put the soup back on the heat to medium, add the pastina to the blended soup and cook per package instruction or until the pasta is fully cooked (7-10 minutes). Add the parmesan cheese, adjust salt and pepper, serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Broth: add a little more broth (or water) if the soup feels too thick to your taste. I like to add water to the carton of broth and shake it to get all of it.
- Pastina: don't add too much, it might seem like it's not enough when it's dry but it'll expend a lot and absorb a lot of the broth.
Nutrition
About Priscilla Lawrence
Hi there, I'm Priscilla Lawrence! Welcome to Sprinkled With Balance where I share elevated and approachable nutrient-rich recipes that aren't overly restrictive, complicated or boring! Based in California but born and raised in France, I'm a mom of two, former certified nutritionist, recipe developer, and food photographer.
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