Oh, how I have missed you! Shhh — don’t tell Gazpacho, but I love you best of all, cold weather soup!
Here’s some tasty broccoli soup that morphed into Broccoli, Potato & Cheddar Soup. Mmm….potatoes and cheese. I saw a recipe at Food Network that I kind of played with and altered to suit my own needs (see potatoes and cheese above). Super easy and tasty on a chilly night.
You can use vegetable broth for a vegetarian soup. Also, there’s no need to peel the potatoes here. Just wash, dice and throw them in the pot!
Broccoli, Potato & Cheddar Soup
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 small red potatoes, diced
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
4 cups chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium
about 8 oz broccoli florets (I was a little under here, probably about 6.5 oz, so, exactness is not a huge deal)
1/2 cup cheddar cheese (generous)
Freshly ground black pepper
Heat oil in a pan, over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until starting to color just a bit, about 5 minutes. Add the potato, thyme, cayenne, salt and cook for about 2-3 minutes, then add the broth and bring to a boil.
Adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer, and cook uncovered until the potato is fork tender, about 10 minutes. Add the broccoli and simmer for 3 minutes.
The mighty cheddar cheese mountain…
Remove from heat and stir in cheddar cheese.
Puree the soup in batches in a blender or with an immersion blender.
Return soup to the pot and bring to a simmer, taste, and season with salt and pepper. Serve with a nice grind of black pepper on top.
Have you ever tried using cream cheese in place of cheddar? I find it makes for a really creamy texture, and it works with nearly any vegetable that can be creamed into a soup. Not quite as strong a flavor though, which might be good or bad depending on what you combine it with.
Of course, cheddar and broccoli is a fairly classic combo, so it really works in your recipes too.
Oh my, this looks delicious. I’m with you. When the temperature dips and the clouds roll in I’m in the mood for soup.
I am so going out right now to make this tonight. I love you too soup weather.
I’m making this tonight too! called and got a good review from Christy. 🙂 it actually inspires me to cook! mmmm.
Yum! Now if only the weather would cool off so that we could enjoy it! Edie