This recipe for Light Cream of Broccoli and Cheese Soup is so delicious and nurturing! Most recipes for this soup call for 2 parts broth, 2 parts cream, and 1 part cheese. My recipe calls for 12 parts broth, 2 parts cream, and 4 parts cheese. This makes for a much lighter version of this soup, but the recipe is still very tasty because of the special ingredients that I add. This makes my Light Cream of Broccoli and Cheese soup tickle the taste buds!
The ingredients are (in imperial measurements):
- 12 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups half and half cream (10% MF)
- 4 cups grated cheddar cheese
- 2 cups chopped chicken (optional)
- 2 medium-sized heads broccoli
- olive oil
- 1 large onion
- 6 to 8 white mushrooms
- 1 stalk of celery
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp cooking sherry
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried tarragon
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried sage
- 1 tbsp dried parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash and chop broccoli into bite-size pieces. Toss lightly with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and spread on a cooking tray. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown.
While the broccoli is roasting, you can chop the onion, celery, and mushrooms. Saute in a large soup pot with a little bit of olive oil over medium-low heat. Dice the garlic and add to the onion mixture. Cook until soft and lightly browned, then add herbs, cooking sherry, and salt and pepper to taste. When the sherry has evaporated, add the chicken broth.
When the broccoli is finished roasting, add it to the soup mixture and simmer on low for at least 30 minutes to blend all the flavors. Then puree the soup with a hand mixer and add the cheese, cream, and chopped chicken. Heat until the cheese is melted and enjoy!
Yields 8 to 10 servings…depending on how hungry you are!
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