Best Broccoli Cauliflower Cheese Soup
This simple Broccoli Cauliflower Cheese Soup is deliciously creamy, and packed with veggies and cheesy flavor.
- Prep Time:
20 minutes - Total Time:
50 minutes - Makes:
11 cups 1x
20 minutes
50 minutes
11 cups 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 8 ounces sweet Italian chicken sausage, casings removed
- 1 cup shredded carrots (about 3–4 ounces)
- 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 8 cups (20 ounces) finely chopped broccoli and cauliflower florets (about 1 small head of each)
- 1 (15-ounce) can Great Northern beans (or other white bean), drained and rinsed
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1–1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot powder (optional; see notes)
- 2 cups freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese, plus more for serving if desired
Instructions
- Sauté sausage, onion, and carrots. Heat oil over medium heat in a large Dutch oven or soup pot. Add sausage, onion, and carrots and cook, breaking sausage up with a wooden spoon, for 7-10 minutes, or until sausage is cooked and onions are tender.
- Add broccoli, cauliflower, and broth; season and simmer. Add broth, salt, pepper, and broccoli and cauliflower florets. Bring to a near boil, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer for 15 minutes or until broccoli and cauliflower are tender, stirring occasionally.
- Add beans and puree. Remove the lid and stir in the beans. Remove about 3 cups of soup and puree with an immersion blender. If using a standard blender, allow the soup to cool slightly and leave the lid slightly cracked when blending. Return pureed soup to the pot.
- Stir in milk, cheese and starch. For a slightly thicker soup, whisk cornstarch or arrowroot starch into the milk. Add the milk and cheese to the pot, stirring until cheese has melted. If thickening with starch, bring the soup to a brief boil (no more than 3 minutes); remove pot from heat and let it sit/thicken for a few minutes.
- Serve. Portion into bowls and serve immediately with a sprinkle of cheese and large slice of crusty.
Notes
Favorite Equipment
- Dutch oven (4- or 6-quart)
- Glass Pyrex containers with lids for storing leftovers
Ingredient Notes
- Cornstarch or arrowroot powder: Arrowroot powder is an excellent grain-free substitute for cornstarch and can be used as a 1-to-1 replacement in this recipe. We use (and love) Bob’s Red Mill Cornstarch and Arrowroot Starch.
- For a gluten-free soup: Use cornstarch or arrowroot starch to thicken (certified gluten-free if necessary.)
- For a vegetarian soup: Omit the chicken sausage and use vegetable broth.
Ingredient Prep
- Chop the onion, broccoli, and cauliflower
- Shred the carrots and cheese
- Rinse and drain the beans
Little Helpers
Involving little ones can decrease picky eating and increase appetite and willingness to try new foods. Here are a few ways they can help:
- Toddlers: Remove sausage from casings; help chop the broccoli and cauliflower (with supervision and a kid-friendly knife); rinse and drain the beans, make the cornstarch-milk slurry
- Little Kids: All of the above, plus open the canned beans; help with blending the soup (closely supervised)
- Big Kids: All of the above plus shred the cheese and carrots
Leftovers
Leftover broccoli cheese soup should be refrigerated within two hours and will keep for 3-4 days. Cool at room temperature for 1-2 hours and store in an airtight container before refrigerating.
Freezing Instructions
Freeze leftover soup in an airtight food storage bag or container. For best results, defrost frozen broccoli cauliflower cheese soup in the refrigerator overnight and warm on the stove over low/medium-low heat to desired temperature. Boiling the soup may cause separation, so taking a low-and-slow approach when reheating will yield the best (and creamiest) results.
Nutrition Notes
Nutrition information calculated using Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage, whole milk, full-fat cheddar cheese, and without cornstarch.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 218
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 886 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 13 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 16 g
- Cholesterol: 57 mg
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