The good news is, we now have heat in our house. (HOORAY!) The bad news is, we still haven’t seen a sign of spring. My wildflowers in the garden are defiant and trying to bloom anyway, but with the temps in the 30s still, I feel really bad for them.
I think I know someone else who is ready for spring — her hair is getting SO long. She really needs a haircut, but with it being so chilly outside, I’m afraid she’ll freeze.
All well. At least I can still buy myself some spring until Mother Nature gets her act together.
We went on a soup spree during the time we didn’t have heat in the house. We were craving something warm, hearty and satisfying, so we turned to our cold-weather-standby, soup. It helps to warm you from the inside out, ya know. We made three different varieties with plenty of leftovers to get us through the week. Each were excellent, but my favorite, hands down, was the broccoli-cheese.
Broccoli-cheese soup was always served at our church dinner following Ash Wednesday mass. I have fond memories of the super cheesy, thick soup with little bits of broccoli floating in it as a kid during Lent. For this recipe, I decided to lighten things up and make the soup more about the broccoli and less about the cheese and cream. A one-pot meal your whole family will love, and all ready in under 30 minutes. I know for a fact that my pictures don’t do it justice, it was gone before I could get an ounce of daylight to give it a proper photo shoot. The ultimate comfort food in a bowl.
{Lightened Up} Broccoli-Cheese Soup
adapted from Cook’s Illustrated
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 lbs broccoli, florets chopped into 1-inch pieces, stalks peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-1/2 tsp dry mustard
- Pinch cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper
- 3-4 cups water
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth (vegetarian? use vegetable broth instead)
- 2 oz baby spinach
- 3 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1-1/2 oz Parmesan cheese, grated fine, plus extra for serving
Melt butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add broccoli, garlic, mustard, cayenne, and 1 tsp salt and cook, stirring frequently until fragrant, about 6 minutes. Add 1 cup water and baking soda. Bring to simmer, cover, and cook until broccoli is very soft, about 20 minutes stirring once during cooking.
Alison Donlon says
Looks good!
Bridget says
it looks delish, em!