Cream of Broccoli Soup with Roasted Garlic and Aged Gouda

Yes! It’s ANOTHER SOUP RECIPE. Alright, I am obsessed with soups right now, and I really don’t feel the need to apologize for it. Soups make such a satisfying dinner recipe, and they are even better the next day if you meal prep to take them for lunch! It is literally a win win. A twist on the classic Cream of Broccoli Soup, this recipe incorporates roasted garlic, aged gouda cheese, and roasted red peppers. I’ve also been loving this harissa infused olive oil*, which adds just enough kick to punch up the flavor a notch. Also- learn how to dice an onion without crying! I use an emulsion blender for this recipe (which is honestly one of my favorite and most used kitchen utensils!), but you can also use a traditional blender to make this creamy soup.

Cream of Broccoli Soup with Roasted Garlic and Aged Gouda, topped with Roasted Red Peppers and Harissa Olive Oil

This is the kind of immersion blender* I use for soups. It also comes with a hand blender attachment, which I use often since I don’t have a traditional hand mixer.

Ingredients:

• 3 medium heads broccoli

• 1 sweet yellow onion

• 3 stalks celery

• 2 Tbsp minced garlic

• 2 Tbsp olive oil

• 1 bulb roasted garlic**

• 4c vegetable broth

• 2c milk (2%, whole, or plain unsweetened milk alternative)

• 1 1/2c aged gouda cheese

• salt and pepper to taste

• Optional but highly encouraged toppings:

  • roasted red peppers*

  • harissa infused olive oil*

  • sour cream

**Roast Garlic in advance: cut the top ¼ off the whole bulb. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil on top and wrap in foil. Bake in the oven at 400 F for 30-40 minutes. Ideally, do this when you are roasting other vegetables to save energy!

How to Dice an Onion without crying:

Peel onion, chop off top but leave root intact, slice in half

Slice from the root to the top, leaving slices attached by the root

Now you've got thin slices attached at the root you can dice!

Carefully dice by slicing the opposite direction of your cuts

Keep finger tips curled to prevent accidental cuts

Finish dicing the onion, and repeat with the second half!

Why does dicing an onion this way help prevent tears? The more cuts you make, the more acid is released from the onion. By making fewer, more precise cuts, you can save yourself some tears!

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large stock pot

2. Dice onion and chop celery (see photos for how to dice onion without crying)

3. Add celery, onion, and minced garlic to the warm oil in the stock pot. Let these saute until fragrant, around 4 minutes.

4. While the aromatics are sauteing, chop the broccoli. I only throw out the very bottom of the stem since it is all getting blended anyway.

5. Add the broth, broccoli, milk, roasted garlic, and a generous amount of salt and pepper to the pot. Bring to a boil then simmer for about 10 minutes, until the broccoli is easily pierced.

6. Use an emulsion blender (honestly one of my favorite and most used kitchen utensils!) to blend all the ingredients together. Alternatively, let the soup cool to a safe temperature before transferring to a conventional blender.

7. Add the cheese and stir, heating through. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

8. Serve and top with sour cream, harissa oil, and roasted red peppers. Enjoy!

Chop the celery and onion

Add the celery and onion to the warm oil

Chop broccoli, feel free to use the stems, too!

Saute the celery, onion, and minced garlic until aromatic

Add the broth, broccoli, and roasted garlic to the pot

Simmer for 10 minutes, then blend

I planned to use cheddar, but aged gouda caught my eye!

Add the cheese to the soup and stir

Heat the soup through and enjoy!

*Standard Disclosure: To help you choose healthy, high quality products, I test hundreds of foods and ingredients each year. Some of the products I recommend are affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, I will receive compensation if you click and make a purchase.