Quick 30 Minute Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Broccoli Cheddar soup is new to my kitchen, but it looked so good this morning, I’ve been thinking about it all day. I started this quick 30 minute broccoli cheddar soup about 2:50 in the afternoon, not knowing how long it would take to make from start to finish. I got the inspiration to make this soup from a fellow group member (Julie K.M.F.) in my Appalachian Cooks group. The problem that I have is, I can’t seem to follow a recipe! I have the hardest time.

So, instead of a recipe for broccoli cheddar soup I am going to make a “how-to” post about how I made this quick 30 minute soup.

I’m not quite sure why I can’t follow a recipe but I do know that today, I didn’t follow the recipe exactly because I was short a few ingredients. I can usually work out of my pantry to come up with any kind of meal one might want despite missing a few key things. I have learned some great flavor substitutes along the way. I have a hard time believing that I am out of garlic cloves. i even joked with the original poster of this soup that I laugh when a recipe calls for one clove of garlic. I think it’s the first time in 5 years I have ran out of fresh garlic – oh well, I just used my dried chives instead.

Ok, I’m getting off track here and need to tell you all how to make my quick 30 minute broccoli cheddar soup. Stay with me, there are lots of pictures. They might not be the best quality, but you get the idea of what is going on from them.

Quick 30 Minute Broccoli Cheddar Soup

The first thing I did was to chop up one onion. I think any kind of onion will work here. Notice my Guy Fieri knife in the picture? I just love it. It is so balanced that it does most of the work for you when you have a heavy chopping load. They don’t make this specific knife anymore but the one I have linked up from Amazon is probably even better than this one.

Guy Fieri Knife Set

The next thing I did was add in a little carrot. Just a little, if you put too much, it will turn your soup orange and take over the whole dish. I just cut the tip off this carrot and ran it over this fine grater a few times. I’ll save the rest for the bunnies.

 

 

Now just cook it until the onions start to get translucent. I decided to chop up the broccoli while I waited. Just chop off the tops and run your knife through them a couple of times to break them down to the right size. you can cut them big or small, it’s just a matter of personal preference. I just had the one big stalk so it didn’t take long. I’ll save the bottom of it for the rabbits, they just love it.

Oh no! Heavens forbid, I’ve almost burnt the onions while chopping up the broccoli. Oh well, when I make a mistake in the kitchen, I’ve learned to just say, “perfect” so that anyone within earshot won’t know that I made a mistake.

It’s time to make the part of the quick 30 minute broccoli cheddar soup that will thicken it up a bit. It’s called a roux, and it involves soaking up the butter with flour and then cooking it for a minute or so. I started with about 4 tablespoons of butter so I am guessing it will take about 3 tablespoons of flour.

 

Something happened to the pictures I took of making the roux and adding the milk, but I will try to tell you good how to make it. I did get a video of what it looks like thickening up, so if I can figure out how to work YouTube, I will add it here later.

After you have all of your butter soaked up with the flour, stir it around for a minute or more until it starts to brown. This will keep it from tasting like glue in your soup. Now start pouring in some milk. Add just enough to cover the bottom of the pan you are using with about an inch of milk. Now stir to combine the roux with the milk. keep stirring until it thickens. Once it gets really thick you can add additional milk a little at a time until you have the amount you want for your soup. The original recipe for broccoli cheddar soup that inspired this dish called for milk, broth and heavy cream. I don’t have anything but milk so it will have to work.

I switched it out of my copper pan and into a deeper pan before adding in all of the milk that I wanted.

Add Salt and Pepper

Take this time to also add in any salt and pepper that you might want to season this soup with. Keep stirring every 30 seconds or so until the soup starts to come to a simmer. If you don’t stir it the whole time, the milk will scorch on the bottom of your pan.

Once it comes to boil while you are stirring it constantly, you can turn it down and let it cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure it isn’t scorching.

 

 

I left a few pieces of the broccoli bigger when I chopped it up so that I could pull one out and taste it myself to make sure it was done enough for my liking. It was!

Add the Cheese

So it’s now time to add the cheese. I start with 3 good handfuls and stir it up until it’s all melted. It really starts to thicken up once you add the cheese to it.

At the point it starts to get thick, I turn the heat off and let it sit on the burner for a bit to let all the flavors blend together. After that, it’s done. That’s it! You’ve just make a quick 30 minute broccoli cheddar soup. Enjoy! I know we sure enjoyed it. The few simple ingredients that it took to make this soup it is so tasty together!

Enjoy!

The bunnies are going to enjoy the remnants of the soup making today to! They like the tops of the broccoli better but will still eat the stalks. When I got done making this quick 30 minute broccoli cheddar soup, It was 3:20 in the afternoon. Only 30 full minutes to make this soup from turning on the burner to tasting the finished product. While this soup is delicious, I think that I will stick to making a cheesy potato soup when I need a bowl of creamy goodness.