Broccoli and cheese soup

Use this easy broccoli and cheese soup recipe with lots of tips so you will be able to make a delicious soup with very cheap ingredients so you save lots of money.

To keep cheese cheap, always buy those old, small left over pieces in your supermarket of groceries, combine a few until you have the quantity needed.

To make your best broccoli cheese soup:

• you need to experiment with the kind of cheese you add. Cheddar works like a charm and the stronger the cheese, the less you need to add (saving again extra money)
• the creaminess of the soup comes from cream, butter, cheese, milk + flour and pureed broccoli. There is lots of room for creativity here. You can even do without the cream and the butter, and just add some extra different kind of cheese left overs
• to save extra money and ingredients: add 1 or 2 potatoes in stead of doing step 6.
• the best broccoli taste occurs after roasting it first in the oven. When you want to save money, you can simply add the raw broccoli forest after you stir-fried the onions: let all veggies saute for a few minutes more and continue the recipe as mentioned below: do make sure you cook the florets until ready: about 15 minutes!

Croutons are always an added plus for both taste as carbs and an ideal way to make the best use of left over bread. Of course when you are on a paleo diet, you will never have bread leftover… But for all of you classic chefs on a tight budget: turn old, dry bread into tasty croutons. Simply fry with some pepper and paprika in a non stick pan whilst your soup is simmering. More fancy would be to mix each cup of croutons in a big bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1/4th teaspoon of mixed spices (paprika, pepper, chili flakes, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano… some salt). Spread them in 1 layer on a baking tray covered with baking paper and roast about 6 minutes in the oven at 200 degrees Celsius (stir occasionally, 1 to 2 times) until they are golden brown.

We repeat for the soup recipe: look for ingredients without added salt. Our cheese of choice is Cheddar cheese, which we consider salty enough to season the entire soup. However if after adding the cheese your soup tastes too faint, you can always add more salt, especially some "Fleur de sel" saltflakes to not only season your soup but also garnish your plates.

When experimenting with strong tasting cheeses: start with adding a bit and taste, before deciding you want to add more, or not.

Broccoli cheese soup recipe

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 150g (5 oz) chopped white onions or sliced white leek (use only the stem of the leek)
• to taste: 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
• 1 pinch of nutmeg
• 1 clove garlic (finely cut)
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves (or a pinch of dry thyme)
• 750ml (3 cups) (no salt added) homemade chicken broth (use more broth or add more milk when the soup becomes too thick for your liking)
• 500 grams (1 pound) of broccoli + olive oil + salt + pepper + freshly ground (Parmesan) cheese
• extra broccoli florets for garnish
• 125 ml (1/2 cup) cream
• 150 grams (5 oz) grated medium Cheddar cheese

How to make broccoli and cheese soup

1. When you don’t have an oven, proceed to step 2: Mix in a bowl: the broccoli florets with olive oil, salt, pepper and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Spread in 1 layer on a baking sheet and leave 25 minutes roasting in your oven at 225 degrees Celsius (440 F) (turn halfway to the time the roses).
2. In a medium soup pot, melt 3 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat.
3. Add the onions (or leeks), salt, pepper and nutmeg and stirfry about 3 minutes, until the onions are soft.
4. Add the garlic and thyme and stir until the aroma is released (20 seconds later).
5. (When you don’t have an oven: add in raw broccoli, otherwise skip this step!!!)
6. Add the flour and keep stirring, until all is well mixed and smells somehow like savory cookies (about 2 minutes)
7. Slowly whisk in the chicken stock and bring to the boil. Reduce the fire and simmer without the lid for about 5 minutes (until the soup thickens a bit.)
8. Add the roasted broccoli florets and puree with an immersion blender.
9. Put the heat on low.
10. Add the cheese, cream and extra 2 tablespoons of butter, let cheese and butter melt, puree again and remove from the stove. Add extra broccoli florets for garnish.
11. Serve your broccoli and cheese soup immediately in bowls with some extra grated (cheddar) cheese.