Make-ahead Holiday Soups

Check some of the best soup for Christmas recipe that you can make ahead of time for your holiday soup celebration! I have put together an easy menu that you can use along with two additional holiday soup menu ideas that you can use during the busy holiday season.

When we think about celebrating the holidays, we think about spending them with our family and friends. Unless your family is cooking with you, it probably means that you would like to spend less time in the kitchen during the festivities and more time with the other festivities of the season.

Making as many parts of our meal ahead of time can help provide more relaxation and enjoyment when the event comes! Check out my three make-ahead holiday soup menus that you can prepare to keep your heart happy and bright!

I like to try to get as many ingredients from my local farmers’ market as I can, and there are still greens available that grow where I live. There are also some apples, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and fall squash.

Why Choose a Holiday Soup Recipe for Your Celebration?

With so many main dishes to choose from, why pick soup as your main event? Here are some of the reasons why I like to have it:

• I can make most of my menu ahead of time, so it will be mostly ready when my family and friends arrive. I don’t want to miss out on the fun.
  
• Let’s face it, for most of us, the weather is going to be cooler, and for most of us, soup is going to be warm and comforting. If you are somewhere where it is going to be warmer, for those of us living in North America, it is still your soup season.
  
• So many soups are rich in vegetables, so it’s an easy way to get them, and they taste good in there when people might not otherwise pick them.
  
• I love the simplicity of a one-pot meal with supporting sides like a dessert, soup, toppings, a salad, and maybe a crusty baguette.

Here are Some of My Best Holiday Soup Ideas with Menus

I am going to share three of the best Christmas soups, but they can be used for almost any winter holiday that you celebrate with a few simple adaptations. My homemade tortellini Christmas soup is already vegetarian, and it could easily have a vegan pasta substituted for my husband’s homemade tortellini.

Make-ahead Holiday Soup Menu One

If you have been wondering “What goes with Tortellini Soup” for the holidays, check out this menu!

Christmas Soup with Tortellini Recipe (See below)
Toppings: Parmesan cheese, cheese tortellini, chopped green onions, and fresh chopped herbs like parsley and basil
Colorful Brussels Sprout Salad
Almond Cranberry White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

My homemade Italian holiday soup is so colorful and delicious that the whole family will enjoy it. Serve it with a hard, crusty baguette, a salad, and a light dessert that you can prepare ahead of time. I think that it would pair nicely with pears. Here are two posts that include some pear desserts!

If you have wondered how to make Italian Christmas tortellini soup? Now is the time to discover how to make it, along with my husband’s homemade tortellini that you can add to it at the end, or even better, cook it and have it on the side so people can add as desired. (I am not a fan of overcooked pasta, especially if you have leftovers and reheat.

Best Italian Christmas Tortellini Soup Recipe

My best Italian tortellini Christmas soup recipe makes a simple but delicious holiday meal. I love the red, green, and white! You can do everything ahead of time except cooking the pasta. When you are reheating and putting finishing touches to the holiday table, let the soup warm to a simmer and add the tortellini; the pasta will cook in about 5 minutes directly in the soup broth. If you are celiac/gluten-free and if you do not have a gluten-free tortellini, substitute a gluten-free grain instead.

Except for the pasta that you can add in at the end or even cook on the side and serve separately to add as desired, along with parmesan cheese.

Makes 4 dinner servings

Ingredients for Christmas Tortellini Soup

2 cups vegetable broth

1 package of cheese tortellini (My husband made ours, but there are some great ones available fresh or frozen)

1-15-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1-14 1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon thyme

Touch of cayenne

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large stock pot, heat the broth and add canned tomatoes. Add basil, thyme, and a touch of cayenne pepper if desired, and allow to simmer. You can leave the soup at this point until you are ready to serve. If you made it way ahead of time, you could even freeze it at this point.

If you are making it a day or two ahead in advance and will keep it in the refrigerator, you can add the beans ahead of time, but don’t freeze them. It will affect the texture. On the day of your holiday event, put the pot on to simmer while making the last-minute touches to the dinner table, and add the pasta to the soup broth. It cooks in about 10 minutes.

Here are some pictures of my husband making the tortellini. When he is in the midst of making pasta, he wants to do it all his self, so I stayed out of his way and took a few pictures! He likes to use Pasta Tecnica as a reference when he makes pasta,

Making Artisan Pasta

Here are two additional make-ahead, best soups for Christmas, along with some menu ideas!

Make-ahead Holiday Soup Menu Two

This second make-ahead holiday soup recipe Christmas edition includes a crock pot version of potato soup from the Peas and Crayons blog (see link below). The crock pot version comes in handy if you are having a holiday open house to keep it warm. I love corn bread with potato soup.

I also have a fruit crisp recipe made in the crockpot if you have two that you can use.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Cornbread Muffin

Seasonal Fruit Crisp

And last but not least, no holiday soup menu collection would be complete without a chili menu idea! Check out this vegetarian version.

Make-ahead Holiday Soup Menu Two

This delicious vegetarian chili recipe is from Debbie, who is a registered dietitian nutritionist at her blog Debbie Dishes!

Vegetarian Chipotle Chili

Corn Tortilla Chips

Pumpkin Cinnamon Donuts

Make some Homemade Italian Christmas Tortellini Soup

I hope that you find this homemade Italian Christmas tortellini soup, or all three of these soup menus, helpful to you as you go into the holiday season and the celebration mode! These menus are easy, tasty, pretty, can easily be made ahead of time, and are also healthy! And I hope that you get a chance to make this Italian Christmas Soup. You can make or buy the tortellini to put in it!

You may also enjoy these 10 Vegetarian Brunch Recipes for the Holidays – Vine Ripe Nutrition.

As an Asheville registered dietitian nutritionist, I love sharing recipes that I make at home to share ideas on how everyone can eat healthy, delicious, and seasonal! If you are new to my stories and recipes, welcome! If you have come back to see what’s cooking, I am so happy to have you! Please share some of these ideas with your friends, and I look forward to more delicious days together ahead! Happy holidays!