I’m on a bit of a cold weather food kick, so needless to say, I have another soup in store for ya! My BFF Melissa made this for me a few weeks ago (it’s a Neelys recipe) and it’s so creamy and delicious, yet also surprisingly good for you! It uses only 1/2 cup of cream, and no cheese…and you would never know it. I made a triple (!!!) batch because I wanted to take meals to a couple of my girlfriends who just had babies. I figured they had probably seen way too many casseroles/pastas and were likely craving some vegetables, so this was the perfect solution (and also freezable if they didn’t want to eat it then).

To add a little richness to the soup, sprinkle some cheese on top or a little sour cream, and serve with a crusty baguette that you can dip. Yummmm.

TW’s TIps

• It is SO worth the investment to buy an immersion blender if you make a lot of soups. It’s also great for mashed potatoes. Otherwise, you can use a blender or food processor but you’ll have to do it in batches.
• Make sure you taste it and add more salt as needed (I added more than I would have thought…probably because it was a triple batch, but whatever!)
• Use homemade chicken stock if you have it.
• To freeze, ladle into ziploc freezer bags (quart or gallon depending on what portion you want to freeze) and lay flat in the freezer. Then you can stand them up once they’re frozen and they thaw more quickly.

Broccoli Soup

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh broccoli
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup cream

Directions

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in heavy medium pot over medium-high heat. Add broccoli, onion, carrot, salt and pepper and saute until onion is translucent, about 6 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute, until the flour reaches a blonde color. Add stock and bring to boil.

Simmer uncovered until broccoli is tender, about 15 minutes. Pour in cream. With an immersion blender, puree the soup. Add salt and pepper, to taste, and then replace the lid back on the pot.