Home From Erika's Kitchen Broccoli Cheese Soup

Broccoli Cheese Soup

by Erika Nicole Kendall

Clearly, since I can get a bag of broccoli frozen for $2, I’m a big broccoli eater. No shame in my game!

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 cup flour

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups chicken stock or bouillon

1/2 pound fresh broccoli

1 cup matchstick carrots

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 cup grated sharp cheddar

Drop your butter in the skillet with the onions, and set the onions aside once golden. Whisk your butter and flour together over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Stir in the cream and chicken stock, and let it sit for about 20 minutes over low-medium heat (on a scale of 1-10, on 5.)

Toss in your carrots, onions and broccoli. Cook until the carrots are tender, and add the salt and pepper. Add the cheese and nutmeg, and ta da! Soup!

If you said my soup didn’t taste equal to or better than Panera’s, you’d be a hot blooded lie!

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16 comments

lynne January 26, 2011 - 3:08 PM

I just made this soup, and I am so proud of myself. I only used 1/2 cup of heavy cream, and 1 1/2 cups of milk and used less butter. It came out really good! I was so tired of giving Panera $4.50 for a cup of their soup, so this recipe was right on time. Thanks!

LaDonna July 15, 2011 - 9:42 AM

With the flour, butter and cheese, what kind are you using. I’m trying to learn about clean eating. Where do I go to get the skinny on the clean versions of dairy products. I’ve heard so many negative reviews about butter/cheese/cream&milk products.

What’s your advice for where I can start my research on this. This is part of the reason I’m battling with my diet. I was thinking clean eating was primarily nothing but vegetables/fruits (mostly thinking I needed to eat them in raw)/lean meats. No salts…no sweeteners. So I’m vastly confused. What sources did you use to educate yourself on clean eating and where do you find your recipes?

I love your blog but I want to start from scratch educating myself. I’ve been cooking by hand since I was a teenager. I wanna know how to cook clean and tasty??? and light. Your brocolli soup recipe reflects the one my sister makes but I’m not sure she’s using the proper type of flour/cheese/butter etc.

Is there a such thing as unprocessed cheese?
Is there a such thing as non processed milk and cream?

As a matter of fact have you ever considered doing a video log and showcasing your kitchen products just to give your followers an idea of what labels to look for, etc.

Lots of questions I have about changing my diet overall.

Can we converse? 🙂

Erika Nicole Kendall July 15, 2011 - 9:58 AM

Very rarely do I do brand recommendations, so I unfortunately cannot help you there.

Flour – unbleached, un-enriched flour.
butter – unsalted, and should only have cream and salt. NOT margarine.
cheese – should NOT be individually wrapped slices. Comes in a block with very few ingredients listed.

Because of how cheese is created, it does have to endure a “process” to be created; however, that process shouldn’t include any ingredients you can’t understand yourself. Cream, maybe herbs and spices, occasionally rennet. Depends on how it’s made.

Milk and cream, in some states, HAVE to at least be pasteurized, because there are laws against raw milk in many states. However, you can get milk from cows not treated with hormones or fed unnatural diets.

Clean eating isn’t about “only fruits veggies and lean meats.” That’s the “bodybuilder” version of clean eating. Clean eating is about a nutritional lifestyle that doesn’t consist of overtly processed food laced with chemicals.

I didn’t have “one source” for everything I’ve learned; You pick up a lot by keeping tabs on food-related articles and different things related to the food industry. Learning how individual things are made, what they should look and taste like when made artisanally and the like are all helpful. You see how things are made, then you see how things that are shoved in our face AREN’T made, then you become annoyed by the lack of transparency, then you realize WHY there’s no transparency, and you stick to eating cleanly.

LaDonna July 15, 2011 - 11:21 AM

How long did it take you before you discovered clean eating? And where did you begin. You blog is awesome. But this is a journey I’m on. I’ve been armed with alot of stuff as I told you in another thread as far as exercise. And sold the dream fitness was a certain size and activity level. Not a lifestyle of purer eating than what we know. I did research a few clean eating websites and picked up some basic rules.

I feel like there’s so much to learn. So many myths I’ve been fed in need of debunking. Its not wonder I never stuck to proper eating. I didn’t understand where I thought I was “doing better, I was only subsituting one bad addiction in food for another, one habit for another.

Some stuff I read here I knew by logic alone. With my first weight loss endeavor I was told drink diet coke instead of regular soda. I told that person that’s like telling a crack addict to smoke less or a less potent version of crack. Get out of here with that??? are you serious?

So some stuff is just intuition. Its putting two and two together and getting gook and chemical dependency. I’m trying to break the addiction. So the stuff you have here constantly helps and reinforces.

I know I’m rambling but you have no idea how grateful I am to be reading this site and getting the stuff I am from it. I’m learning I’m not failing just because I’m weak. There’s actually some chemical imbalances with this! The more you know the further you go.

LaDonna July 15, 2011 - 1:45 PM

Thanks. I responded to the information in the link and further questions via email. Hope to hear back soon. thanks!

Indira January 25, 2012 - 12:30 AM

This is pretty tasty. I used the bouillon, which probably adds a bit more salt than plain chicken stock. I also added frozen veggies in addition to the fresh broccoli and mushrooms. All and all very hearty, makes for a good lunch!

Erika Nicole Kendall January 25, 2012 - 8:01 AM

Salt, and tons of unnecessary chemicals, yeah. 🙁

Zaza July 26, 2012 - 11:21 AM

How is this healthy with melted butter, heavy cream, and chedder cheese?

starrynight September 29, 2012 - 4:19 PM

Yum, yum, yum! I LOVE broccoli and do a mean broccoli and blue cheese soup – heaven in a bowl!

SpecialK October 14, 2012 - 7:08 PM

This was so good! Like Lynne, I was so proud of myself, especially when I realized how easy it was to make soup. I can’t wait to take this for lunch tomorrow. It’s perfect for this crisp fall weather we’ve been having in NYC.

Kalila October 16, 2012 - 11:56 PM

Just made this. Flavor was really good until I added an extra cup of cheddar. Now I’m missing the base notes. So maybe one cup of extra sharp cheddar would be better for me. Also an easy way to make homemade broth: roast some seasoned chicken pieces in a slow cooker with water just covering the bottom. Remove the chicken, debone it, and take off the skin. Put the skin and bones back in the slow cooker. Add more water, bay leaf, celery, and spices. Cook on high for an hour. Easy broth for soup and nice tender chicken for another meal.

Olivia February 28, 2013 - 1:30 PM

I love this recipe. I have made it twice and both my picky anti healthy food husband and my picky 14 month old love it! It’s not the easiest to cook and I don’t use cream and sometimes I don’t have enough milk on hand or broth so I use what I have and mix with water. It still tastes great!

thelady July 16, 2013 - 12:01 PM

Do you think this soup would freeze well? I live alone and if I can’t freeze it I’d have to eat it 4 days in a row.

Erika Nicole Kendall July 20, 2013 - 10:20 PM

I honestly wouldn’t know, because my family always tears it up!

I really should try to test stuff for freezability. I’m gonna have to research how to do that effectively. Thanks for the idea, mama, and if you freeze it, let us kno the results!

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