
Winter slows everything down — whether we want it to or not. The walks are shorter, the days are darker, and even the simplest errands feel heavier when you’re buckling car seats with numb fingers, navigating icy parking lots, and wrestling winter coats + gloves onto small bodies, small hands. December, January, and February ask a lot of us, especially when we’re caring for little kids and still trying to keep everyone fed, warm, and steady.
During seasons like this, I’ve learned to lean into rituals that make the weeks feel gentler instead of harder. One of those is soup night — one dependable evening each week where dinner is warm, nourishing, and uncomplicated. Five years ago, during another especially hard winter, my best friend challenged me to plan one new soup recipe a week. It gave the season shape. So here we are again, returning to what works.
Soup Day: Week 1 | Easy Tomato Soup
This winter, I’m committing to soup night once a week, cycling through recipes that feel grounding and doable — the kind of food that carries you through dark evenings and long stretches indoors. From tomato and lentil to potato leek, chicken noodle, and miso, these are the soups I’ll be cooking to get us through the cold months.
We’re starting simply. This week’s soup is tomato — easy, familiar, and made with just a handful of ingredients. Sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed: something warm on the table, one small anchor in a long winter season.

Easy Tomato Soup
Equipment
- medium pot
- immersion blender
- can opener
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes
- kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- ¼ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- In a medium pot, melt butter over medium-high heat, add onion and a pinch of salt, and cook until translucent. Add garlic and pinch of red pepper flakes, stir until fragrant.
- Add can of whole peeled tomatoes, with all the juices, crushing each tomato over the pot, season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add tomato paste and mix well to incorporate.
- Add in vegetable broth, bring to a boil, and allow to simmer for 20-25 minutes. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until completely pureed. If you have fresh basil on hand, definitely add some in before blending.
- Add in heavy cream, stir well to incorporate, and adjust seasonings as needed.