Healthy Broccoli Cheese Soup in a Pot
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Inside: Healthy Broccoli Cheese Soup in a Pot
I have a recipe to share with you. (Healthy Broccoli Cheese Soup in a Pot) It came about because I fell in love with a pot. Not any pot, but a new-fangled pressure cooker. I got this pot because a few weeks back I was making broth in my slow cooker and it boiled over.
Why I broke up with my Crock Pot
I was minding my own business, sitting in my office when I heard this sizzle-y sound coming from the kitchen. When I turned the corner into my kitchen I saw that the broth had boiled over in my slow cooker. As in, boiled over and out of the crockpot, into a drawer, into a cabinet, and onto the floor. The crock pot wasn’t even close to full, and, for the life of me, I have no idea why a slow cooker set on low could possibly boil over. But it did. #nomorecrockpotforme
So, I’ve permanently broken up with my slow cooker and replaced it with my new cooking love. It’s called the Instant Pot 7-in-1 Pressure Cooker. Just look at this beauty. All sorts of settings, including yogurt! {There is even a tempered glass lid that can be purchased. This is what I use for the slow cooker feature}
I bet you’re wondering why I would want a pressure cooker. Don’t they occasionally explode and leave sweet potatoes on the ceiling? Well, this is a not your mother’s pressure cooker. It has 10 built-in safety features that are electronically controlled. It is impossible to open the lid until the machine reads that the pressure has been released.
What makes this pot so awesome?
- Forget to thaw out something for dinner. No problem-o. The Instant Pot can handle it.
- Baked potatoes cook in minutes and they are so fluffy on the inside.
- Veggies cook in about 5 minutes, as in, frozen broccoli in 5 minutes or less. And, the nutrients are preserved.
- It’s also a slow cooker. Did you catch that – it’s a slow cooker that locks, seals, and doesn’t boil over and causes me to spend half a day cleaning up after a mess. And, when it goes to the Warm setting, the food doesn’t continue to cook ~ it just keeps it warm!
- It makes nutritious bone broth w/gelatin in about 2 hours. Not in 2 days, 2 hours!
- It’s a Yogurt Maker {really, I made perfect yogurt}
- It’s a steamer – I can steam veggies or fish!
- It’s a rice cooker. Perfect rice in about 10 minutes. Not gummy rice, not burned rice, perfect, fluffy rice
- A pot of beans can cook in under 10 minutes (as long as they’ve been soaked)
Back to the Soup Recipe
Like I said, I’m in love with a pot. Below is one of the first recipes I made in my super awesome pressure cooker. My soup was done in about 30 minutes. That means I can goof off work all day long and still have a nutritious dinner on the table by six ~ even if I start dinner at 5:30!
One of my favorite soups is Broccoli Cheese Soup. But, I don’t really like some of the ingredients: heavy cream + cheese + { burp} + broccoli = Too Rich For Moi! Until I found this Cooks Illustrated recipe which has all of the flavor but none of the cream. And, it has the addition of spinach which makes it super healthy, but not super rich.
This recipe can easily be made on the stove, but it also works great in the Instant Pot! The Instant Pot has a Saute setting which means I can melt the butter and saute the veggies before adding the liquids. #ilovethispot #reallyreallylovethispot
When simmered on the stove, the soup thickens nicely. When cooked in the Instant Pot it can be a little thin. All I did to counter-act this was add some arrowroot powder (blended with broth) to the Simmer function on the Instant Pot and it thickened in about 3 minutes.
Enjoy, whether on the stove, slow cooker, or and Instant Pot Pressure Cooker.
Here’s the Recipe
Healthy Broccoli Cheese Soup
Gluten-Free and Healthy Broccoli Cheese Soup is the ultimate comfort food. Broccoli, spinach (a little), cheese, and chicken broth. Tons of flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Butter (I prefer unsalted)
- 2 lbs. Fresh Broccoli, cut into 1 inch pieces (frozen works, too)
- 1 Medium Onion (chopped)
- 2 Garlic Cloves (minced)
- 1 1/2 tsp. Dry Mustard
- A pinch of Cayenne
- 3-4 cups water
- 1/4 tsp Baking Soda (this helps with the negative effect associated w/broccoli)
- 2 cups Chicken Broth
- 2 oz Baby Spinach (frozen works, too)
- 3/4 C. Cheddar Cheese, grated (I like Sharp!)
- 3/4 C. Parmesan, grated ( I use Pecorino Romano 'cuz it's so stinking good)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, melt butter.
- Add broccoli, onion, garlic, mustard, cayenne and 1 tsp salt. Salute until veggies begin to soften.
- Mix baking soda w/1 cup water and add to mixture.
- Bring to a simmer. Cook until broccoli is very soft, about 20 minutes.
- Add broth and 2 cups water. Increase heat to medium high. Bring to a simmer.
- Stir in spinach and cook until softened.
- Add cheeses. Once melted, blend soup with an immersion blender (or transfer to a blender and blend in batches).
- Adjust consistency of soup to your liking with remaining water (I found it didn’t need any more). Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Top with a dollop of Greek Yogurt and a sprinkle of cheese. Green onions or parsley are also fabulous.
- OR: Toss everything into the Instant Pot and hit the Soup setting!
Notes
This recipe is adapted from Cook’s Illustrated, March/April 2011
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