Easy broccoli cheese soup is made with fresh broccoli and no canned soup or processed cheese.
Broccoli cheese soup is one of my all time favorite soups. I usually make cheese and broccoli soup on the stove top. I’ve been wanting to make it in the slow cooker, but I wasn’t sure it would work.
Most of the broccoli and cheese soup recipes I’ve seen for the slow cooker call for either canned soup or processed cheese. Now, I’m not afraid of a little processed cheese, but I see no point in making a homemade soup recipe that calls for canned soup.
I also rarely have processed cheese on hand, but I almost always have a block of cheddar or some other kind of cheese in my fridge. I wanted a recipe I could make without having to run to the store for one ingredient.
The soup starts by cooking the broccoli and some other veggies in chicken broth. I was afraid the broccoli would get mushy, but it didn’t. It got just soft enough to be perfect.
Once the broccoli is cooked, use an immersion blender to cream it a bit. I like big chunks of broccoli in my soup so I left a lot of the vegetable whole. But blending it helps add a little thickness to the soup.
I’ll be honest that this soup is not a heavy, thick creamy broccoli soup. It had more of the consistency of chicken noodle soup. But it was still delicious!
I did use half and half in place of the heavy whipping cream so I think using the cream would make the soup thicker. And of course if you add some processed cheese, that would also help to thicken it a bit. I promise not to tell!
Feel free to substitute cauliflower for the broccoli for a twist on this soup recipe!
Easy Broccoli Cheese Soup in the Slow Cooker
Easy Broccoli Cheese Soup in the Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 2 large head broccoli, cleaned and cut up
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 1 large can (48 oz) chicken stock (about 6 cups)
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups shredded mild Cheddar or American cheese
- Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Put first 4 ingredients in a 6 quart slow cooker.
- Set slow cooker to LOW, cover and cook for 7 to 8 hours.
- When done cooking, use an immersion blender to puree the mixture in the slow cooker, or remove mixture to blender and blend until smooth. Return to slow cooker. Feel free to leave the veggies a little chunky as well.
- Turn slow cooker to HIGH.Add the cumin, Worcestershire sauce, heavy cream, and shredded cheese, stirring until mixture is hot and cheese is melted. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 283Total Fat: 22gCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 17g
