This is our first year growing broccoli and when the weather briefly cooled to fall temperatures, it made us want to make soup. My co-worker brought in some cheddar broccoli soup, which I had to have. So we harvested some broccoli and made some soup. We paired it with some Zucchini Herb Scones, which was the perfect pairing, especially when dipped into the soup!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp butter, margarine or bacon fat
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves fresh garlic
• 1/4 cup salted butter, margarine or bacon fat
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups broth (I used chicken, but vegetable is also fine)
• 2 cups half and half or other heavy cream
• 1.5 – 2 cups broccoli (florets and stems can both be used), roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and grated
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp dry mustard
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2 cups cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Place large soup pot on stove on medium heat. Add tbsp of butter, margarine or bacon fat. I used bacon fat for some extra flavour. Saute onion and garlic until onions are soft and translucent.
2. With the onion & garlic still in the pot, add 1/4 cup of butter, margarine or bacon fat. Once again I went with bacon fat. When melted, add flour and whisk together to create a roux. Continue mixing the roux for approximately 1 minute.
3. Add 1 cup of the broth slowly to the roux, whisking as you pour. Continue with the remaining broth and cream, pouring slowly and whisking as you pour.
4. Once all combined, let the mixture cook for 2 minutes, while whisking often to ensure the cream doesn’t scald.
5. Add paprika, dry mustard, salt, and pepper to the base and whisk to combine.
6. Add broccoli and carrots, stirring to combine them with the soup base. Reduce heat to low-medium and simmer about 10-15 minutes until the soup has thickened and the broccoli are fork tender.
7. Using an immersion blender or regular blender, blend a portion of the soup or all the soup to the desired consistency. If you want larger chunks of broccoli, only blend a small amount of the soup.
8. Add grated cheddar cheese and stir to melt and combine the cheese into the soup. Taste the soup and add salt and pepper if needed.
9. Serve hot with shredded cheese on top or with some delicious Zucchini Herb Scones.

CHIT CHAT PORTION

I regularly collect our bacon drippings for use in recipes like this. It adds some additional flavours to savoury meals, as well as a touch of salt. I regularly use it when sauteing vegetables for soups or stir fry’s. I also like using it to cook potatoes or make hash browns. It is especially good for making homemade nuts n’ bolts at Christmas.

I wanted a bun to dip in the soup and am still currently obsessed with the zucchini herb scones that I shared a recipe for a few weeks ago. So, I whipped up a batch that used tarragon, oregano, rosemary and a touch of basil. When dipped in the soup, all those fresh herbs went so well with the cheesy broccoli goodness. I highly recommend trying it out.

This was so good that we ate all of it. I had thought that I might be able to freeze a bit of it to enjoy when it gets chilly out, or after a cross-country ski this winter, but it was just too good. I’m hoping that we have enough time to get another couple good harvests of broccoli and will make some of this for the freezer. If not, I might just have to buy some broccoli this winter to make a batch with.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!