Broccoli and Cheddar Soup Recipe
Making your own soup offers a wide range of benefits, both for your health and your culinary satisfaction. One of the primary advantages is the control you have over the ingredients. When you make soup from scratch, you can choose fresh, high-quality produce, herbs, and meats, ensuring a more nutrient-dense and flavourful dish. Unlike canned or pre-packaged soups, which often contain preservatives, excess sodium, and artificial additives, homemade soup can be tailored to your specific dietary needs. Whether you prefer a low-sodium, gluten-free, or vegetarian option, the power to customise is in your hands.
Another advantage is the ability to experiment with flavours. Making soup from scratch allows you to explore different combinations of ingredients, seasonings, and textures, creating a truly personalized meal. You can adjust the thickness, spice level, and richness to suit your tastes, and there's always room for creativity. Moreover, soup-making is often a forgiving process. If you find that the flavour isn’t quite right, you can tweak it with a little more salt, pepper, or herbs, or even add a splash of something unexpected like a dash of vinegar or a dollop of cream to elevate the taste.
Homemade soup also tends to be more cost-effective in the long run, you can make a large batch that will last for several meals. Many soups freeze well, allowing you to save leftovers for later and reduce food waste. Additionally, cooking from scratch helps you avoid the often inflated prices of store-bought convenience products, while providing a more satisfying and wholesome meal.
Homemade soups are great for stretching the budget, they can fill tummy’s at a low cost but still be full of nutrition. I often sweep the end aisle of the supermarket for the veg of the week and scurry home to make a batch of soup if there is anything suitable. I freeze the soup in batches so that my family can take them to work or I use them as a starter to ensure a meal stretches.
I find making soup from scratch is a comforting and therapeutic process. The act of chopping vegetables, simmering broth, and smelling the rich aromas that fill the kitchen can be meditative. Also soup making isn’t like baking a cake where the recipe has to be precise to get a successful result, you can completely go rogue and create wonder meals. Preparing your own food also gives you a greater sense of accomplishment, as you know exactly what goes into the meal you’re eating.
Whether you're making a cosy bowl of chicken noodle on a chilly day or experimenting with a complex, multi-layered stew, homemade soup is a labour of love that nourishes both body and soul. However, today I would like to share my Broccoli and Cheddar soup recipe.
Broccoli and Cheddar Soup Recipe
Broccoli is a nutrient-dense vegetable that belongs to the cruciferous family, which also includes kale, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts. Packed with vitamins and minerals, broccoli is an excellent source of vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, and fiber, as well as powerful antioxidants like sulforaphane, which have been linked to various health benefits, including anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. This versatile vegetable can be enjoyed in a variety of ways—steamed, roasted, sautéed, or even eaten raw, but makes the most amazing soup! Its mild, slightly earthy taste works very well with a good sharp cheddar. Aside from its impressive nutritional profile, broccoli is also low in calories, making it an ideal addition to any balanced diet.
As I have mentioned before you can really go quite rogue when making soup so the recipe does not need to be followed to the letter.
1 large knob of butter ( approx 3 tablespoons)
1 medium onion (This can be substituted with a leek)
1 garlic clove
1 large broccoli head
Chicken or vegetable stock
Whole milk
1 medium potato
Cheddar cheese (I use extra mature Cheddar for a full flavour, and you don’t need as much!)
Method
Chop the florets off of the broccoli and toss into a large saucepan. Do not discard the stalks! Roughly chop the smaller stalks and then peel the main large stalk and chop the centre and also add to the pan. There is virtually no waste with the exception of the large stalks outer skin which can be a bit stringy.
Peel and cube the potato and add to the pan, and then chop or slice the garlic and onion also and toss into the pan. If you don’t have an onion you can use a leek as this works well also.
Add in the butter and put onto the heat and stir until the butter has melted and the veg begins to cook but not brown. Just for a few minutes.
Pour in enough stock to cover the veg completely and pop the lid on and simmer until all the veg are tender.
Use a stick blender or liquidiser to blend the soup until smooth. The soup will thicken when blended as the potato is a natural way to thicken soup because it’s starchy, without having to use flour. Return the very thick soup to the pan and add the whole milk, stir as you go adding a bit at a time until the soup is the thickness you desired. Grate the cheddar and add a handful and stir until melted and combined. Now taste, you can add more cheddar until you have the balance you desire. Add salt and pepper to taste and it’s ready. Or add ½ tablespoons of Dijon mustard to give it a twist. It’s really important to taste as you go and make the soup to your individual liking.
Broccoli and cheddar soup freezes well and can be kept in the freezer for up to three months. So it's a perfect time to make a large batch and fill the freezer, so you have soup to see you through until the spring!
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