Best Homemade Broccoli Cheddar Soup

September 16, 2011

Stop buying that canned stuff and make this recipe for this fantastic broccoli cheddar soup. This recipe is all vegetarian , primarily made with vegetable stock and almond milk. This soup can be served chunky or creamy. I blend this soup with an immersion blender but a food processor or regular blender (make sure not to fill it up the whole way or it will explode) also gets the job done. I love to serve this broccoli cheddar soup with a few homemade sourdough croutons.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Ingredients:

8 cups raw broccoli, florets and stalk, chopped

1 shallot, chopped

1 lemon, juiced

3 cups vegetable broth

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 small red onion, chopped

1 cup plain yogurt

3 cups Yukon Gold potatoes, rough chop (skin on)

1 cup parsley

1 bay leaf

1/2 cup olive oil

1 cup almond milk, plain flavor

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

In your soup pot, saute over med-high heat: 2 Tbsp of your olive oil with the shallot, onion and jalapeno. When cooked lightly, add in lemon juice, veggie broth, remaining oil, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium. Add Potatoes and bring broth to a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender.

Add chopped Broccoli (florets and steams). Remember to leave out a few florets for later use though.Cover with lid, when broccoli is tender, turn heat off.

Transfer contents of pot into a large mixing bowl. Allow to cool slightly. Add to the bowl the fresh parsley, Chobani and almond milk. Fold new ingredients into the hot soup mixture.

In batches, puree the soup in a food-processor (maybe someday soon, a Vitamix!) or blender. Soup should be smooth-no lumps or chunks. In the soup pot, add the broccoli florets, a dash of veggie broth and saute covered for about a minute until tender. Add the pureed soup back into the soup pot. Add a bay leaf and a few pinches of chopped basil (optional). Simmer uncovered for at least twenty minutes to cook out all the air bubbles. Stir constantly for the first few minutes. Remove the bay leaf before serving or storing.