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Only the Best Ingredients for This Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe!And that means no processed food in my broccoli cheese soup recipe, such as canned cream of mushroom soup, or Velveeta cheese, or anything like that. I do go along with canned or boxed chicken stock, and I am even okay with frozen broccoli, because each of these is just the basic food packaged in a way that preserves it. But processed food is another thing altogether, and it is usually full of salt or MSG. And honestly, it just does not taste as good as fresh, homemade food! Ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped finely
1 small carrot, chopped finely Splash of olive oil 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons flour 2 cups milk, room temperature 1/2 pound chopped frozen or fresh broccoli 2 cups chicken stock 1/2 pound of cheddar cheese, grated Salt and pepper to taste Preparation1. Heat olive oil in soup pot on medium low heat.2. Add onion, carrot, and salt. Sautee until onions and carrots are soft. 3. In separate pot, melt butter on medium low heat. 4. Add flour to melted butter a bit at a time. Mix well to prevent lumps. 5. Cook flour and butter mixture for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. 6. Slowly add milk to flour and butter, mixing thoroughly as you go to remove lumps. 7. When all the milk is added, return it to the heat, and gently warm it up. 8. When the milk, butter and flour mixture (white sauce) is hot, begin to add the cheese a bit at a time. Allow it to melt in before adding more. 9. When onions and carrots are done cooking, add chicken stock and broccoli. Turn up heat to medium-high. 10. Slowly add the cheese sauce to the soup, mixing thoroughly as you do so to avoid lumps. (If you can't tell, I don't like lumps!) 11. Add pepper, and more salt if necessary. NotesCheddar cheese and broccoli both have such strong, distinctive flavors that it is hard to match them with any herbs. Instead, you can accent their strong, savory tastes with other strong flavors such as a dash of white wine, or some dijon mustard in the cheese sauce. I have even heard of beer being included in a broccoli cheese soup recipe!Also, you can experiment with other types of cheese to create your own broccoli cheese soup recipe. Try something milder like a swiss or edam. Lastly, other vegetables that soften when heated can be used. Asparagus goes very well with this type of soup, or even as a complete replacement for the broccoli. Vegetables that remain firm, or those that go completely mushy, don't work all that well. You want something that has some bite to it, but not a crunch. It is this texture that makes it work well in a cheese sauce. Tips and TechniquesWhen you are making a white sauce (butter, flour and milk) it is best to have the milk at room temperature. This lets it combine with the flour more easily, which prevents clumping.Most of the time when cream or milk is added to a recipe, it is best to have it at room temperature. Otherwise the increased difference in temperature can lead to unexpected results. This goes for baking just as much as it does for a broccoli cheese soup recipe. Return from Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe to Cream Soups
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