Best Pizza Soup Recipe

Some days are "pizza" kind of days, but when you're trying to cut back on dialing your local pizzeria, and you want the essence of a pizza without the cheese and topping-loaded crust, then it's time to try your hand at making pizza soup. This quick and easy recipe developed by Jaime Bachtell-Shelbert of Wholly Nourished has all the flavor sensations of a pizza, but without the extra calories. 

"I love this recipe, because it makes for a quick weeknight meal," says Bachtell-Shelbert. "It's also customizable, so I can really throw in whatever veggies I have on hand." So while this version calls for onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, and spinach as the main "pizza toppings," you could use jalapeño, broccoli, or even kale, if that's what you have on hand. And while Bachtell-Shelbert's version is vegetarian-friendly (Optional Parmesan cheese is the only animal product in the recipe.), if you're a meat lover, you can throw in your favorite "pizza meat," too.

You'll want to start by gathering all of your ingredients. Bachtell-Shelbert's recipe calls for extra-virgin olive oil, a diced onion, four cloves of minced garlic, two minced bell peppers, 1 cup of chopped mushrooms, dried oregano, a can of diced tomatoes, a jar of pizza sauce, 4 cups of vegetable broth, and chopped spinach. 

This is also the point where you can add or omit veggies, depending on your personal preferences or what you have on hand. And, if you're not a vegetarian, you can opt for meat or cheese-based pizza sauces, or a meat-based broth (Beef or chicken broth both work!) to give your soup a slightly more robust flavor.

If you want, go ahead and prep your optional toppings as well. Bachtell-Shelbert suggests sliced black olives, shredded Parmesan cheese, and fresh basil.

With all of your ingredients prepped and ready to go, start by heating 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and minced garlic to the pot, and sauté the ingredients for roughly three minutes, stirring often with a spatula to keep any of the individual pieces from overcooking. The onions and garlic should start to soften and release their lovely aromas.

When the onions and garlic have started to soften, go ahead and the other "pizza toppings" to your soup pot to sauté the veggies. Following Bachtell-Shelbert's recipe, this includes the minced bell peppers and the chopped mushrooms, but now would also be the point to add other items like jalapeño, broccoli, or even meats, if desired. "I think sausage would work well. It could be added and sautéed with the other veggies," Bachtell-Shelbert says. 

When the veggies have sautéed for two more minutes, add 1 tablespoon of dried oregano to the pot, and sauté for one more minute, combining well. 

With the veggies mostly prepped and the soup starting to give off a decidedly "pizza-like" aroma (Chalk that up to the garlic and oregano!), it's time to add your tomato flavors. Pour your can of diced tomatoes (Pay attention to the flavor of your can of tomatoes — options with garlic, basil, or olive oil offer a particularly pizza-like flair.), your jar of pizza sauce, and your broth into the pot. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce the heat, and allow the soup to simmer for 10 minutes. 

While you can certainly use store-bough broth for this recipe, Bachtell-Shelbert points out that it's easy to make and use homemade vegetable stock. "[Boil] onions, celery, carrots, fresh herbs like thyme, parsley, and bay leaves, with salt and pepper. This can be done on the stovetop or in a slow cooker or Instant Pot," she says. "I like to add garlic as well." And of course, that added garlic will help add to the flavor of your pizza soup.

With the vegetables well-cooked and the flavors well-combined, the last step before you remove your soup from the heat is to add the spinach. Spinach cooks very quickly, so you don't want to leave it on the heat for too long. Simply add the spinach, and stir. When the leaves start to wilt and turn a bright green, take the pot off the heat source. This will allow the spinach to continue cooking in the hot soup without overdoing it.

With all the ingredients well-combined, your pizza soup is officially ready to serve! Go ahead and taste-test the soup to make sure it has the flavor you're looking for. You may have noticed that this recipe doesn't call for salt — that's by design. "I didn't use salt, because broths tend to contain varying amounts of sodium," Bachtell-Shelbert says. "I recommend tasting the final product and adding salt as needed." 

When the flavor is perfect, decant up to six evenly-portioned servings into separate bowls, and top each bowl with sliced black olives, a smattering of Parmesan cheese, and a leaf or two of fresh basil. Like the spinach, the basil will start to wilt, helping release its aroma. Then, if you're inclined, Bachtell-Shelbert suggests serving the soup with garlic toast or breadsticks. This will give you a little bit of that "pizza crust" flavor, but with a novel approach as you eat it with a bowl of soup, instead.