Quick and Easy Cream of Tomato Soup {gluten, dairy and egg-free}

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I don't know about you, but as an American consumer I have become so accustomed to certain packaged foods, that I have come to believe that they can not be made at home, but must be purchased in a can.  Things like canned pumpkin, cranberry sauce and baked beans are a mystery to me.  If you can't get it in a can, then you can't have it (or so I think) because such things certainly can't be made at home.  Of course I realize that before canned pumpkin ever existed, people made pumpkin pie.  And I do know that cranberry sauce and baked beans can be made from scratch.  But it is my natural inclination to believe "I need a can of (fill in the blank)".

Now lately I've been lamenting the fact that our family can't open a can of Cream of Tomato Soup for lunch.  So you can imagine my delight and surprise when I realized that tomato soup does NOT have to come in a can.  In fact, it can be made at home and it can be quite tasty and quite easy!  Oh, and might I add that this homemade version is way healthier for you than a can of condensed soup. I don't even know what's in a can of condensed soup, but it can't be all that good for you.  But tomatoes are good for you.  They are high in vitamins A, C, E, potassium and folic acid.  They're also high in Lycopene, an important anti-oxidant. I don't want to slight those of you who have to restrict tomatoes from your diet, as my daughter did in the beginning.  Perhaps you will eventually be able to enjoy them once again, as my daughter is now (One can always hope!).

So here I share with you my very fast, very easy and very tasty recipe for gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free Cream of Tomato Soup.  It is adapted from a recipe I found in one of my most used crockpot cookbooks, Fix It and Forget It.  This recipe can, I'm sure, be made in the crockpot but I've just been making it on the stove since it's so quick and easy (hence the name).

Cream of Tomato Soup {gluten, dairy and egg-free}

46 oz bottle of tomato juice (V-8 juice states “gluten-free on label” or generic version)

8 oz can tomato sauce
½ cup broth (beef, chicken or vegetable)  ALTERNATELY:  ½ cup water plus 1 Celifibr boullion cube*
½ tsp dried basil
2 TBSP sugar
¼ cup instant potato flakes* (These serve to thicken the soup so it’s more like that can of condensed tomato soup you remember.)

In a large stockpot, combine all your ingredients.  Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently.  Cook until heated through and slightly thickened.  Serve.  This can also be prepared in the crockpot.  Freezes well so make extra!

*I've recently discovered a gluten and dairy-free bouillon cube called Celifibr.  It tastes great and doesn't have anything in it that you don't want. – Use one cube for this recipe

*Betty Crocker Potato Buds state on the label they are gluten-free.

This recipe is being shared at Life as Mom