Delicious and comforting Healthier Quick and Easy Broccoli Cheddar Soup made with tons of nutritious veggies! It’s comfort food that will leave you feeling great.
This is the kind of soup you crave! It’s creamy, flavorful, and (bonus!) filled with veggies. I love a soup that’s hearty and filling but also lightened up a bit. Is that even possible? This Healthier Broccoli Cheddar Soup says YES! We’ve got carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, garlic, and onion all working to give you an awesome immunity boost. Serve it up with a slice of crusty bread and OMG…heaven. Heaven!
Broccoli Cheddar Soup Without Cream or Flour
Most of the time Broccoli Cheddar Soup gets it’s trademark thickness from heavy cream and flour. Instead of those, I used cauliflower. Stay with me! I know what you’re thinking–cauliflower?! Trust me here, though! When cooked and blended, cauliflower actually adds an incredible creamy texture that’s rich, comforting, and filled with nutrients. Plus, we’re still topping this soup with delicious cheddar cheese!
How to Make Broccoli Cheddar Soup From Scratch
This is a really simple recipe that you can make with one pot over the stovetop! Homemade Healthier Broccoli Cheddar Soup is as easy as…
- Sauté: Get the onion, carrots, and garlic cooking first. Add in cauliflower and broccoli.
- Boil: Add enough broth to cover the vegetables and bring it to a boil. Bring it down to a simmer and let everything cook for about 15 minutes.
- Blend: Use an immersion blender to pulse everything to your desired consistency. I love a thick soup with some bigger pieces of broccoli left in. If you don’t have an immersion blender, your regular blender will work just fine.
- Cheese: The final and best step. Stir in cheddar cheese and finish with salt and pepper! I recommend using the highest-quality cheddar you can find since it’s one of the stars of the show. Grate your own cheese if possible and soups on!
More Comforting Soups
- Instant Pot Loaded Veggie Coconut Soup
- Coconut Lime White Chicken Chili
- Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Soup
- Winter Minestrone Soup
- Seafood & Potato Soup
Food photography by Ashley Cuoco
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Healthier 30-Minute Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
Delicious and comforting Healthier Quick and Easy Broccoli Cheddar Soup made with tons of nutritious veggies! It’s comfort food that will leave you feeling great.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 small head of cauliflower, chopped into florets (about 3 cups of florets)
- 1 large head of broccoli, or 2 small heads, chopped including stems (about 5–6 cups)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 6–8 cups low sodium chicken broth (or veggie broth)
- 2 cups grated cheddar cheese (plus extra for garnish)
- Chives
Instructions
- Preheat a large pot over medium/high heat. Add the oil, butter, onion, carrots and a pinch of salt. Cook for 3-5 minutes until veggies begin to soften, stirring occasionally.
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
- Add the cauliflower, broccoli, 1 teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of pepper. Cook for 5 minutes stirring occasionally.
- Add 6 cups of broth to start (you can always add more if needed). Most of the veggies should just barely be covered. Bring to a boil then partially cover, turn heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes until veggies are easily fork tender.
- Once veggies are cooked use an immersion blender to blend soup to desired consistency. If the soup is too thick add more broth. I prefer to leave it thick with lots of texture and even some larger pieces of broccoli throughout. If you don’t have an immersion blender you can carefully transfer soup to a blender and blend to your desired consistency. If doing this, make sure to leave space for the steam to escape while blending.
- Once blended, stir in cheddar cheese until melted completely. Add salt and pepper to taste. I added about 1 additional teaspoon of salt. This will mainly be determined by how salty your stock was.
- Garnish with extra cheese, a sprinkle of chopped chives and some crusty bread.
Comments
Amy Greenspan
This was delicious! The whole family loved it- which is rare for anything other than pizza. More veggies than they would have eaten as well! I’ll definitely make again!
★★★★★
Laney Schwartz
What a great win for the whole fam!
Susan Hollowell
Hi Laney,
Can you tell me the calories per cup serving? Thank you for such a delicious recipe!
Susan
Laney Schwartz
Sorry, I don’t know
Jessica
Can this be made with frozen veggies?
Laney Schwartz
Sure!
Maraya
I bought an immersion blender JUST for this recipe (I don’t own a blender either). And it was SO worth it – I’m absolutely in love with this soup. I wish the nutrition facts were included in this recipe, but otherwise, 10/10!!
★★★★★
Laney Schwartz
So glad you love it!!
Mary P
Made this today for a friend who had dental surgery and can’t eat anything hard (yikes, lol), so pureed this a little more than I normally would, but it is so flavorful and comforting!
★★★★★
Laney Schwartz
What a nice thing to do! So glad they enjoyed it!
Megan Light
Made this today and it came together so quickly! It’s an easy recipe but still makes a hearty and delicious soup!
★★★★★
Laney Schwartz
So glad you liked it Megan!
Lauren Hobson
Made this tonight! Used a mix of gouda and cheddar!!! It was good and easy to make!
★★★★★
Life is but a Dish
That sounds awesome!
Cathy M
This has quickly become one of my favorite comfort recipes, and knowing its got so many veggies in it makes it even better. Thank you for creating such approachable, delicious recipes! I can’t wait to have this one memorized 😊
★★★★★
Samantha
and you’ve done it again! another home run recipe! Didn’t think the fam would enjoy this as much as they did! Saved it! Thank you!
★★★★★
Life is but a Dish
Oh I’m so glad!!
Maya
Making for the 1st time… my thoughts on freezing would be to freeze just the vegetables with the broth, then when reheating add the cheese? Have not tried yet… but sounds like it would work…
Krystal
Could you make this in the instant pot? What would the time be to pressure cook?
Life is but a Dish
Should be fine! Probably only about 5 minutes!
JO
This looks delish. I love the idea of making a big batch of soup and freezing it to reheat on thanksgiving as guests come in. Any tips on freezing and thawing soup? I’ve actually never tried it.
Kathy
DELICIOUS! Simple to make, no weird ingredients, and packed with veggies. I don’t have an immersion blender, but the normal blender worked just fine. Thanks for another great recipe!
★★★★★
Life is but a Dish
So happy you liked it Kathy!
Anice
Would it taste good without cheese? I can’t have diary.
Life is but a Dish
Totally! Might need a bit more seasoning
Margery
Hey! This looks great. Any chance it freezes well? thx!
Life is but a Dish
I haven’t tried but I think it would
:D
Will you still achieve the thickness & creaminess without cheddar cheess? Can you put Greek yogurt instead?
Margery
Sounds delicious!! Any chance it freezes well?
Life is but a Dish
I think it would, but I haven’t tried
Bridgette Urbano
I am so excited to try this!!! About how many servings does this make? It isn’t listed on the recipe. I want to make this next week but I am considering if I should double the recipe. Thank you Laney!
Life is but a Dish
Just updated! 4!