I have never made soup before (besides using a can opener that is!) Also, when I say homemade, that does NOT mean I made my own stock. That’s just silly IMO unless making homemade chicken noodle soup. I found 2 yummy looking recipes for Broccoli Cheddar Ale soup. I kinda sorta combined them/tweaked the ingredients and recipes a little for my taste:
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 medium red onion, minced very, very teeny tiny as I hate biting into onions
4 whole green onions (I trimmed them down to about half size. Again..not an onion fan)
2 whole garlic cloves, minced
2 bunches of broccoli (I only used florets)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon
sea salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 bottle (12-ounce) ale (I used a Pale Ale)
2 cups skim milk (although might try with full fat milk next time)
2 cups chicken broth (1 cup reserved)
4 – 4.5 cups grated sharp cheddar
Instructions:
Add the oil to a large heavy-bottomed pot set over medium-high heat.
Add the onions and cook until the onion is translucent, add the green onion and garlic, dry mustard, a small pinch of sea salt, and a crank of fresh ground pepper. Saute for slightly longer until green onions get soft.
Sprinkle in the flour and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring so it is well incorporated.
Pour in the beer and cook until the liquid reduces by half (about 5-6 minutes)
Whisk in the milk, 1 cup of stock, and broccoli.
Continue to cook for about 10 minutes.
Use a blender (got to use my immersion blender for the 1st time!) to blend the ingredients until you have the consistency you want (chunky broccoli or creamier)
Add the grated cheddar in batches, stirring frequently until it melts (keep the soup at a simmer – don’t allow it to boil)
When all of the cheese has melted, check for consistency – if you would like the soup a bit thinner, add the reserved stock.
I added a sprinkle of shredded cheese (yes…more), a few croutons and parsley (solely for presentation) and it was YUM!
One thing to note is that it is pretty salty. 4.5 cups of cheese can do that. I would probably try using whole milk and make sure the chicken stock is low sodium next time. I love salt but if anyone is salt-sensitive, they might find it too much. But I think adding thicker milk might counteract that, as well as low sodium stock. So might adding less cheese but whatever. :)
I had leftovers so I am currently warming some up for lunch today! Yumyumyum
