Broccoli & Cheddar & Potatoes! Oh My!

Broccoli & Cheddar & Potatoes! 

Oh My!

I love love LOVE broccoli cheddar soup, so I finally decided to make it myself.  I heard it wasn't a difficult soup to make, so off to the store I went for fresh broccoli.  

Here is a list of ingredients I used:

•  3 crowns of broccoli, chopped into small chunks
• 6 cups of rice milk (you can use any kind of milk)
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup of flour
• 4 potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 2 cups sharp cheddar, shredded
• 4 cups mild cheddar, shredded
• salt & pepper
• ground nutmeg

First, I chopped and rinsed all the broccoli.  

Setting the broccoli aside, I melted the stick of butter in a large cast iron pot (dutch oven) on medium heat.  

Once the butter melted, I added the onions and garlic with a little salt and pepper and cooked them until the onions were translucent.   

 
Next comes the flour.  It's important to sprinkle the flour over the onions little by little so  you don't have clumps of flour.  Let the flour cook with the onions for about 3 minutes and then add the broccoli, potatoes, milk, and nutmeg.  

Bring the pot to a boil and then let it simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.  After that, the broccoli and potatoes are very tender.  Some people like to put there broccoli cheddar soup through the blender or use an emulsifier, but I've always liked chunky soups.  I used a potato masher to break down some of the broccoli and potatoes and then added the cheese.  

Once the cheese is all melted it's time to taste test.  Add salt and pepper to taste and then it's ready to serve.   This recipe ended up making about 6 quarts of soup which my family of five demolished for dinner. 

Yum! Enjoy.