BROCCOLI CHEESE SOUP

Today was a warm December day.  65 degrees.  I thought about doing a little work in the yard to get rid of the rest of the fall leaves, but it began to rain.  Shucks.  So instead I whipped up a batch of Broccoli Cheese Soup and it was yummy!

Here's how.....

Gather your ingredients:  Whole Milk, Half and Half, Butter, Broccoli, Cheddar Cheese, Onion, Salt and Pepper and Nutmeg

Begin by melting a stick of butter in a large pot

Add a whole onion, diced.  Saute for 3 or 4 minutes.

Add a 1/3 of a cup of flour.  Stir and cook another minute.

Add 4 cups of Whole Milk and 2 cups of Half and Half.

Add 4 heads of fresh broccoli florets.

Stir well.  Cover and Simmer for 30 minutes or until Broccoli is tender.

Take pictures of the pretty apples and tangerines on the counter top.  Oh wait, you don't have to do that.  Your soup will turn out just fine if you don't.

Here is the very important part.  V E R Y   I M P O R T A N T!!!  Turn the heat off.  Let your soup base cool down some.  THEN stir in your 3 cups of shredded Cheddar Cheese.   Bring the heat back up a little so the cheese begins to melt.  The key is LOW and SLOW.  Low heat and slowly add cheese allowing it to melt.  If your soup base is too hot, your cheese proteins will separate and you'll have ugly, gritty cheese. YUCK.  -  I did not know to do that....see the boiling bubbles in my soup.  That is bad!

The cheese melted all right, but we had gritty soup.  It tasted just fine, but now I know better the next time I make it.

Your soup can be eaten as is, or blending in a blender to take the chunkiness out of it.

I mashed my broccoli down with a whisk then dumped the whole pot of soup into the crock pot set on warm to wait for the dinner hour to arrive.

We served ours with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese and bacon bits on top.

This recipe has been added to the EZDINNERS blog.

Ingredients

• 1 whole Onion, Diced
• 1 stick 1/2 Cup Butter
• 1/3 cup Flour
• 4 cups Whole Milk
• 2 cups Half-and-half
• 4 heads Broccoli Cut Into Florets
• 1 pinch Nutmeg
• 3 cups Grated Cheese (mild Cheddar, Sharp Cheddar, Jack, Etc.)
• Small Dash Of Salt (more If Needed)
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• Splash Of Chicken Broth If Needed For Thinning

Preparation Instructions

Melt butter in a pot over medium heat, then add the onions. Cook the onions for 3 to 4 minutes, then sprinkle the flour over the top. Stir to combine and cook for 1 minute or so, then pour in milk and half-and-half. Add nutmeg, then add broccoli, a small dash of salt, and plenty of black pepper.

Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender. Stir in cheese and allow to melt.

Taste seasonings and adjust if needed. Then either serve as is, or mash it with a potato masher to break up the broccoli a bit, or transfer to a blender in two batches and puree completely. (If you puree it in a blender, return it to the heat and allow to heat up. Splash in chicken broth if needed for thinning.)

Enjoy!