Nothing comforts and warms the soul like a great bowl of soup! Plus soup makes for great leftovers making our dollars stretch a little further. This soup is made to taste like Panera's Broccoli Cheddar (which is fabulous!) and it really is very similar! I opted to lighten up this recipe by reducing the amount of butter & flour and using fat free half & half and reduced fat cheese. Feel free to use the original amounts, which I have placed in parenthesis beside the ingredients that I reduced. I will definitely make the original on days I want to indulge a bit more. This soup is creamy, comforting & has a great flavor, plus its a great way to get your veggies in...covered in cheesy, creamy goodness!
Lightened Up Broccoli-Cheddar Soup
Source: Amber’s Delectable Delights adapted from Food Network
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (Indulge with 6 tbsp. butter)
1/2 large onion, chopped
1/8 cup all-purpose flour (Indulge with 1/4 cup AP flour)
2 cups fat free half-and-half (Indulge with regular half & half)
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves or 1/2 tsp. chopped bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4 cups broccoli florets, about 1 head
1 large carrot, diced
2 1/2 cups, approximately 8 oz., grated reduced fat sharp white and yellow cheddar cheese, plus more for garnish (Indulge with full fat cheese)
Directions:
In a large soup pot over medium heat, melt butter. Add onion and cook until tender 4-5 minutes. Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, approximately 2-3 minutes. Gradually whisk in half & half until smooth. Add chicken broth, bay leaves, nutmeg, salt & pepper & stir to combine. Bring to a simmer then reduce heat to medium low & cook uncovered for about 20 minutes until slightly thickened.
Next add broccoli & carrots to the broth and simmer approximately 20 minutes, until tender. Transfer the soup to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Return to pot. Whisk in cheese, stirring constantly over medium heat until melted. If soup is too thick add up to 1 cup water to obtain the right consisitency. If it is too thin add a slurry of 1/2 tbsp. cornstartch to 1/2 tbsp. water. Ladle into bowls & garnish with cheese if desired.
Source: Amber’s Delectable Delights adapted from Food Network
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (Indulge with 6 tbsp. butter)
1/2 large onion, chopped
1/8 cup all-purpose flour (Indulge with 1/4 cup AP flour)
2 cups fat free half-and-half (Indulge with regular half & half)
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves or 1/2 tsp. chopped bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4 cups broccoli florets, about 1 head
1 large carrot, diced
2 1/2 cups, approximately 8 oz., grated reduced fat sharp white and yellow cheddar cheese, plus more for garnish (Indulge with full fat cheese)
Directions:
In a large soup pot over medium heat, melt butter. Add onion and cook until tender 4-5 minutes. Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, approximately 2-3 minutes. Gradually whisk in half & half until smooth. Add chicken broth, bay leaves, nutmeg, salt & pepper & stir to combine. Bring to a simmer then reduce heat to medium low & cook uncovered for about 20 minutes until slightly thickened.
Next add broccoli & carrots to the broth and simmer approximately 20 minutes, until tender. Transfer the soup to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Return to pot. Whisk in cheese, stirring constantly over medium heat until melted. If soup is too thick add up to 1 cup water to obtain the right consisitency. If it is too thin add a slurry of 1/2 tbsp. cornstartch to 1/2 tbsp. water. Ladle into bowls & garnish with cheese if desired.
Panera's brocolli soup is my favorite! I'm looking forward to trying this soon. Thanks for posting!
ReplyDeleteI love soup, and broccoli cheese is one of my favorite soups.
ReplyDelete