Broccoli-Cheese Soup
Hi all,
I tried this recipe from Cook's Illustrated last night and OH EM GEE. For the record, I DO NOT LIKE BROCCOLI. In pretty much any form. It's okay as an ingredient, but as a primary source of flavor? No, thank you.
Until I made this soup.
The thing is, you cook the broccoli for long enough that the flavor I'd always associated with broccoli (sort of like dirt crossed with sweat crossed with cat pee, you know the flavor I'm talking about) just goes away. What's left is this amazingly smooth and rich vegetable flavor that is vaguely reminiscent of broccoli, but actually good.
This recipe is optionally vegetarian (if you use vegetable broth for chicken broth) and could be served as a side dish. The Manfriend and I ate it for dinner last night, though, and it was plenty. :)
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds broccoli , florets roughly chopped into 1-inch pieces, stems trimmed, peeled, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 medium onion , roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard powder
Pinch cayenne pepper
Table salt
3-4 cups water
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
2 ounces baby spinach (2 loosely packed cups) (Actually, I used about 1/3 cup of defrosted frozen spinach. Worked just fine.)
3 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (3/4 cup) (I used extra sharp)
1 1/2 oz. Parmesan cheese, grated fine (about 3/4 cup), plus extra for serving
Ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When foaming subsides, add broccoli, onion, garlic, dry mustard, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 6 minutes. Add 1 cup water and baking soda. Bring to simmer, cover, and cook until broccoli is very soft, about 20 minutes, stirring once during cooking.
2. Add broth and 2 cups water and increase heat to medium-high. When mixture begins to simmer, stir in spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute.
3. Transfer half of soup to blender, add cheddar and Parmesan, and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Transfer soup to medium bowl and repeat with remaining soup.
4. Return soup to Dutch oven, place over medium heat and bring to simmer. Adjust consistency of soup with up to 1 cup water. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, passing extra Parmesan separately.
I tried this recipe from Cook's Illustrated last night and OH EM GEE. For the record, I DO NOT LIKE BROCCOLI. In pretty much any form. It's okay as an ingredient, but as a primary source of flavor? No, thank you.
Until I made this soup.
The thing is, you cook the broccoli for long enough that the flavor I'd always associated with broccoli (sort of like dirt crossed with sweat crossed with cat pee, you know the flavor I'm talking about) just goes away. What's left is this amazingly smooth and rich vegetable flavor that is vaguely reminiscent of broccoli, but actually good.
This recipe is optionally vegetarian (if you use vegetable broth for chicken broth) and could be served as a side dish. The Manfriend and I ate it for dinner last night, though, and it was plenty. :)
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds broccoli , florets roughly chopped into 1-inch pieces, stems trimmed, peeled, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 medium onion , roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard powder
Pinch cayenne pepper
Table salt
3-4 cups water
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
2 ounces baby spinach (2 loosely packed cups) (Actually, I used about 1/3 cup of defrosted frozen spinach. Worked just fine.)
3 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (3/4 cup) (I used extra sharp)
1 1/2 oz. Parmesan cheese, grated fine (about 3/4 cup), plus extra for serving
Ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When foaming subsides, add broccoli, onion, garlic, dry mustard, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 6 minutes. Add 1 cup water and baking soda. Bring to simmer, cover, and cook until broccoli is very soft, about 20 minutes, stirring once during cooking.
2. Add broth and 2 cups water and increase heat to medium-high. When mixture begins to simmer, stir in spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute.
3. Transfer half of soup to blender, add cheddar and Parmesan, and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Transfer soup to medium bowl and repeat with remaining soup.
4. Return soup to Dutch oven, place over medium heat and bring to simmer. Adjust consistency of soup with up to 1 cup water. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, passing extra Parmesan separately.