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Broccoli Cheese Soup

Published: by 106 Comments

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Nothing beats a warm bowl of soup on a chilly winter night. This Broccoli Cheese soup is hearty, tastes fresh, and is full of cheesy flavor!

Broccoli Cheese Soup with extra carrots and broccoli

Growing up in Chicago, I have fond memories of walking home after school during the cold, cold winters. I remember the sting on my cheeks from the wind, and the chill in my bones from the subzero temperatures. I remember snowball fights with my friends, and not being able to feel my fingers and toes after hours of playing outside! My favorite activity was always walking down to the neighborhood sledding slope, and spending hours running up the hill and sliding back down.

This Broccoli Cheese Soup is ready in 30 minutes, and is packed with flavor!

Of course, after all of this play, nothing beat coming home to a warm, home cooked meal. My mom always had something for my brother and I, ready to warm us up. Soup was a staple growing up, whether it was this Broccoli Cheese soup or something else. Soup has always had a comforting effect on me, and I love being able to warm my kiddos up as well (even though it’s only for a day or two a year in Houston, ha!).

This soup is the perfect combination of fresh, perfectly tender veggies and smooth, creamy cheddar cheese. Adding in some hot sauce really kicks up the flavor, and really, you’re welcome to up the spice if you are looking for that deeper flavor profile!

This soup can be on the table in 30 minutes or so, and is always rewarding when the kids (and husband) gobble it down like they haven’t eaten in a week! If you are on the fence, check out all of the comments below, with ideas to really enhance this classic recipe!

If you love this recipe, check out some of my other favorite soups below!

Mom’s Vegetable Beef Noodle Soup

Creamy Chicken Fajita Soup

Ultimate Chicken Noodle Soup

Enjoy!

Warm, fresh, cheesy Broccoli Cheese Soup

P.S. – Don’t forget to click below on the recipe card to get your printed recipe!

Print Recipe
3.60 from 15 votes

Broccoli Cheese Soup

A hearty, flavorful soup that comes together in no time!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Main Course, Side Dish, Soup
Cuisine: American
Keyword: broccoli, cheese, soup
Servings: 4
Author: The Cookin' Chicks

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoon butter
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 tablespoon flour
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 3 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 1/2 lbs broccoli florets
  • 1 cup carrots, diced
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
  • 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Instructions

  • Heat the butter in a large saucepan/dutch oven.
  • Add in the onion and saute for about 4 minutes, or until soft.
  • Sprinkle flour onto the onions and cook another 2-3 minutes, or until no more lumps appear.
  • Add in the milk and vegetable broth.
  • Bring to a rapid boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes.
  • Add in the broccoli and carrots.
  • Cook about 15-20 minutes, or until vegetable are tender.
  • Add salt, pepper, hot sauce, and cheese and stir until cheese is melted.
  • Serve warm with crusty bread!!
Tried this recipe?Mention @TheCookinChicks or tag #TheCookinChicks!

More Main Dish


Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Anonymous

    LOVE THIS RECIPE!!! No more waiting til it’s the “Soup du Jour”, @ the restaurant, sides, theirs is’nt nearly as tasty, accompanied by a crusty, butter-slathered hunk of rustic grain bread, & all’s well in MY world…

  10. Judy Cohen

    I always stock up on frozen diced onions and broccoli florets….can I go from frozen or must it be fresh?

  15. Kristin and Adriana

    Yep! You could do that too! Just add everything in and cook on low for about 5-6 hours 🙂

  17. Kristin and Adriana

    Yes, you can use chicken broth in place of vegetable broth, just be sure to remove any fat from the chicken broth prior to using 🙂

  20. Anonymous

    Do I have to use chedder cheese or can I use colby jack or american cheese n will it taste just as good

  21. Kristin and Adriana

    I’ve never used other cheese so I’m not sure. It may change the taste up but it should work the same 🙂

  23. Kristin and Adriana

    Hmmmm, I’ve never considered that, but I’m sure it would work. You would probably want to use two cans. 🙂
    Let us know how it turns out if you try it that way!

  27. Kristin and Adriana

    Awwww, hope this tastes good to you guys and hope you all get to feeling better soon! Darn flu bug is not fun 🙁

  28. Anonymous

    Yea I think I will try it with da can cheese n ill let u no how it turns out bc im thinking about making it tomorrow…thanks for da recipe 🙂

  30. Anonymous

    It’s a cold in New England tonight so I made this for my family. We all LOVED it! I’m already thinking of when I should make it again. Thanks for sharing this great recipe!

  32. Anonymous

    This soup tastes great, I made it the other night. What am I doing wrong when the cheese sauce has a grainy texture?

  33. Kristin and Adriana

    Cheese needs to be melted at a low temperature, and stirred constantly. If heat is too high, it can break down the cheese causing grainy texture. Did you cook on low? Other than too high of heat or not stirring enough, I’m not sure why that would happen. So sorry that happened to you 🙁

  34. Jenny from Minnesota

    I cooked on medium heat and stirred constantly. Next time I will use low heat. Thank you for your reply.

  39. Kristin and Adriana

    Hot Sauce just adds a slight kick to it, more for additional flavor then anything 🙂
    I’ve seen nutmeg used too and that’s just to add a slight sweetness to it 🙂
    Either way is yummy!!!

  40. Andrea

    I made this with about half of the broccoli required, and it was broccoli overload. The first few bites were good, but I just couldn’t finish it. I think this would be better as a side (think cup-sized portions) than a main dish.

  41. Anonymous

    Made this soup last night and I am questioning whether the 1 1/2 lbs of broccoli was correct? Way too much! Should it have been 1 1/2 C. maybe? Made it exactly like the recipe and ended up making another batch without the broccoli and carrots and adding it to what I already had. It was then perfect and delicious! I will make again.

  42. Kristin and Adriana

    Yeah, some of my friends that have had this like it as a side dish as well 🙂
    We love broccoli, so its always a main dish in our house 🙂

  43. Kristin and Adriana

    Hmmm, the lb is correct over the cup, however, it depends on the size of the fresh broccoli stalks as we usually get about 2- 2 1/2 cups out of 1 1/2 lbs and it ends up being perfect for us. It depends on preference for sure though 🙂

  44. Pam Morton-Durham, NC

    I am making this today. I added 4 med sized russet potatoes and about 1/2 to 3/4 jar of Ragu double cheddar cheese sauce. Its coming together great and is tasty.

  47. Amanda Bruhn

    Trying this tonight, I have a some broccoli to use up, hope its as good as the reviews, I’m looking forward to it!

  48. annabell@MapleRidgeFarmGirl

    This is great! But I had to use half broccoli and half cauliflower b/c i only had a head of broccoli in the house. Also, I had to use some Velveeta with a little cheddar for the same reason. BTW-LOVE your cooking blog!!! 🙂

  49. Melissa

    To the people that have tried this recipe, does it taste like Panera Bread? It sure looks a lot like it!

  50. Kristin

    I know I don’t count bc its my recipe, however, it definitely does taste like Panera Bread’s recipe in my opinion!!! 🙂

  53. Tina Dominguez

    My husband LOVES broccoli, not me! So I made it for him with half the broccoli and added a few potatoes. He loved it! I’ll make a batch of cream of mushroom soup for me, he hates it. Then we’ll both be satisfied!!

  56. Kristin

    Hi!! Here are the nutritional values, hope that helps! Serving Size: 1 (445 g)
    Servings Per Recipe: 4-5 Calories 628.1 Calories from Fat 441

  57. Sheri

    I made this yesterday and it was delish!! I used skim milk and that was fine. I did have to thicken it just a bit more. I fed three people and it disappeared quickly. Next time I will double, maybe even triple the recipe

  58. Kristin

    Awww, so glad you enjoyed it! Good idea on doubling or tripling batch next time, this is definitely a crowd pleaser, 🙂

  59. Sheri

    I made this again today and this time I doubled it. The batch amount is perfect! I did learn something though. Next time I won’t double the hot sauce amount….whoa!! lol. It’s a bit spicy and over powers the soup. Lesson learned.

  60. Kristin

    Haha, yes, I can see how that would add quite the kick to it, lol. So glad you enjoy this soup. It is a favorite of mine, 🙂

  63. Diana

    I’ve made this soup every week for the last two months. I use unsweetened almond milk and an infusion blender to breakdown most of the broccoli then add the cheese. OMG I’m so hooked on this soup. Thank you so much for sharing!!!

  64. Kristin

    Hehe, sounds like I need to move into your house to have this each week. YUM!!! Great idea using the blender and almond milk!!! So glad you enjoy it!! Have a wonderful Easter!!

  65. anonymous

    I just made this and halved the recipe. The proportion of milk and veggie broth was way off. Not enough liquid to cook the veggies. I added more broth, but not sure it will mess up the flavor. Disappointing for sure.

  66. Kristin

    Oh I am so sorry it wasn’t a hit with you. I just made this last weekend and it worked great, but I will try halving it this weekend to see how it turns out and if I need to make any adjustments! Thanks!

  69. Sabrina

    I just made this soup this morning. I added 4 potatoes just because I love potatoes, but didn’t change anything else. It turned out great. It was actually the first soup I’ve made and it was so easy. My 5 year old daughter helped me.

  70. Kristin

    So glad you enjoyed it! Great idea on adding the potatoes!!! How fun that your 5 year old daughter was able to help, its always special when the kids can join in on the recipes!

  71. Dee

    I made this tonight!!! Out of this world!!!! The entire family loved it…I doubled it and have just a small bowl left for lunch tomorrow. This is a keeper!

  72. Kristin

    Yea!! So glad you all enjoyed it! Leftovers are rare in my house with this recipe, so enjoy your lunch, haha!!

  75. Judith

    I made a half portion of this soup yesterday and the only thing I had to change (as did another contributor) was to add more milk and stock as it was way too thick. It didn’t affect the flavour though, as it was gorgeous.

  78. Kristin

    Servings Per Recipe: 6

    Amount Per Serving

    % Daily Value

    Calories 400

    Calories from Fat 289

    72%

    Total Fat 32.2 g

    49%

    Saturated Fat 20 g

    100%

    Cholesterol 95 mg

    31%

    Sodium 629.2 mg

    26%

    Total Carbohydrate 13.7 g

    4%

    Dietary Fiber 1.9 g

    7%

    Sugars 2.6 g

    10%

    Protein 15.5 g

  79. Judith

    This is now my ‘go to’ vegetable soup recipe. I’ve made it 3 times and use it for whatever veg I have left over in the fridge – it works with anything. My first batch was the same as the recipe, the second had added cauliflower and the third had cauliflower and swede. Just stick with the same overall weight of veg. It’s fantastic.

  83. Denice W

    This is a great recipe..I didn’t use carrots or the kosher salt. I did add 1 Cup of white rice, it came out very tasty!

  88. Abra

    Gluten free flour from Pillsbury is actually a better thickener than regular flour if you can believe it.

  91. Sam

    This soup was delicious! New family favorite!
    I added 1 1/2 cups of potato cubed and an extra 1/2 cup of broth and milk.

  93. cindy

    Why are the ingredients on the fb post and the cooking chics how to make directions? do I use chicken broth or vegetable stock, half med. onion or whole, ofruth cup of Flour or 3 tablespoons,nutmeg or not? Whoch recipe taste limost like Panera?

  94. cindy

    Pardon my mis typing … just trying to figure out why the difference and which recipe to use.

  95. Kristin

    Which recipe are you seeing duplicates of? It should be the same on both Facebook and the Cookin’ Chicks. We have had some issues with other sites taking the content, so let me know and I will clarify ingredients/directions! Thanks!!

  96. Carole Darroch

    CAN I USE I CUP OF MILK AND 1 CUP OF HALF &HALF FOR THE THE 2 CUPS OF MILK? THANK YOU IN ADVANCE.

Trackbacks

  4. […] 1 tablespoon melted butter 1/2 medium chopped onion 1/4 cup melted butter 1/4 cup flour 2 cups half-and-half cream 2 cups chicken stock 1/2 lb fresh broccoli 1 cup carrot, julienned 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese salt and pepper How to make it : Full Recipe […]

  5. […] 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese salt and pepper How to make it : Full Recipe (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || […]

  6. […] 1 tablespoon melted butter 1/2 medium chopped onion 1/4 cup melted butter 1/4 cup flour 2 cups half-and-half cream 2 cups chicken stock 1/2 lb fresh broccoli 1 cup carrot, julienned 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese salt and pepper How to make it : Full Recipe […]

  7. […] Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe from The Cookin Chicks… […]

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