Description

Broccoli cauliflower cheese soup, but with all the flavor. It’s packed with veggies plus a little bit of sharp cheddar cheese. There is a vegan option to use only nutritional yeast, or a combo of both cheese and nutritional yeast. All will result in a delicious and comforting bowl of soup.

Ingredients

Units Scale

8 cups broccoli florets + their stems, chopped. Separate florets from stems (about 4 or 5 heads of broccoli)
Cauliflower base
8 cups cauliflower florets (about 1 1/2 heads)
8 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
6 cups filtered water
1 3/4 cup milk (any milk you prefer. If using dairy free, use an unsweetened, unflavored version)
1 tablespoon butter (or sub vegan butter or olive oil for vegan)
1 yellow onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
cheese/spices
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)*
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)*
salt and pepper to taste (don’t skimp on the salt here, it helps to bring out that cheesy flavor)

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Instructions

Boil Cauliflower: In a large stock pot with a tight fitting lid bring the chicken broth and the water to a boil. Add the cauliflower and the reserved broccoli stems. Set aside the broccoli florets. Simmer for 7 to 10 minutes, or until fork tender. Use a slotted spoon to remove the cauliflower florets and the broccoli stems, DO NOT DRAIN THE LIQUID, and add them to a blender.
Saute the onions and garlic:While the cauliflower is boiling heat a separate large stock pot or dutch oven, with a tight fitting lid over medium heat. Melt the butter. Add the onions and saute them until tender, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute. Remove and add to the blender with the cauliflower.
Steam the broccoli florets: Returning to the pot that the onions were sauteed in add 1/2 cup water, or enough to cover the bottom of the pot, bring to a simmer. Add the broccoli florets and pop the lid on. Steam for 5 to 7 minutes, until fork tender. Make sure to stir it occasionally. Don’t over cook because it will cook little longer when we heat the soup up. Turn off the heat and set the broccoli aside. Remove 1 to 2 cups of the broccoli florets into a dish, set aside.
Make the cauliflower base: Returning to the blender. You may need to work on pureeing the cauliflower base in batches. First, add 1 cup of the reserved cauliflower cooking liquid plus 1/2 cup milk at a time. Blend until smooth. Continue this process until all of the broccoli and the cauliflower has been blended. You can add the blended cauliflower base to the pot with the broccoli.
Blend the broccoli: To the blender along with some of the cauliflower base add the reserved 1 to 2 cups broccoli. Blend until the broccoli is mostly broken down but green specks remain. Add it to the pot with the remainder of the broccoli and cauliflower base.
Heat up soup and add flavors: Gently heat up the soup while you add in the nutritional yeast and/or cheddar cheese*. Along with the nutmeg, and salt and pepper. If the soup seems too thick you can thin it out with more of the broth/cauliflower cooking liquid, I added about 1 cup extra. Once heated through serve immediately. Leftovers keep for about 1 week.

Notes

*There is a vegan and dairy free option for this soup. You can omit the cheddar cheese and only use nutritional yeast. If this is the case then you may want to add more nutritional yeast then the recipe states. OR you can only use the cheddar cheese for a more classic flavor. OR you can use a combination of both nutritional yeast and cheddar cheese. I tested the recipe with only nutritional yeast and then with the combo of cheese and nutritional yeast. I preferred the combo, the nutritional yeast allows me to cup back on the cheese a little while the cheese still gives me that classic cheddar flavor. Either way, the soup is really delicious.

Another tip on cutting down on the cheese is to use a sharp cheddar, it has a stronger cheesy cheddar flavor so you don’t need as much. Also, I highly recommend choosing a good quality cheddar, quality cheese has better flavor. I recommend grating your own cheese from the block, it melts better than the pre grated stuff.

Don’t throw away the broth cooking liquid from the cauliflower. It’s full of good flavor. You can use it in any soup recipe or any other recipe that calls for broth. It freezes for up to 6 months. 🙂