Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1/2 medium chopped onions
- 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 carrots, julienned
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese
- Salt and pepper
Preparation
Step 1
Sauté onion in butter. Set aside. Cook melted butter and flour using a whisk over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Stir constantly and add the half & half. Add the chicken stock. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add the broccoli, carrots and onions. Cook over low heat 20-25 minutes. Add salt and pepper. Can be puréed in a blender but I don't. Return to heat and add cheese. Stir in nutmeg.
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REVIEWS: (274)
I just read about a hundred of these reviews...I think its funny how people say "this doesn't taste at all like Panera" and then go on about how they changed this and that part of the recipe when they tried it:-) I have not yet made this, but when I do I'll be using vegetable broth (not sure if I should use that or chicken-style vegetarian broth). Even so, a suggestion that might be helpful. The people that say it was flavorless...my guess is if you use a high quality sharp cheddar like Cabot instead of Kraft it will make it much more flavorful. And then it seems like most of the people that really disliked this recipe said it was much too thick. The recipe didn't specify whether or not to cover while simmering, but that can impact how thick the soup is as can the size/shape of the pot and what your definition of a "simmer" and "low heat" are, among other things. Its easy enough to replace water that has evaporated or add more broth (depending on how the too thick soup tastes)...silly to grudgingly eat it or throw it out because its too thick!
This soup is delicious! I did add some garlic to the onions, and sauteed the carrots (which I grated) with the onions and garlic. Just a note about curdling....the lower the fat content in the milk product (half & half, milk, cream, etc) you use, the higher your risk of curdling. The higher fat content protects it from curdling as easily. That being said, you can still use low or no-fat products, but you have to take great care not to let them boil. My suggestion would be to make the soup all the way through, and add the milk products and cheese at the very end and heat gently, and slowly.
This was an awesome soup. And whether this tastes exactly like Panera who cares, it is fantastic. I think you would have to have a side by side taste test to even compare, and lets face it , if you don't use the exact brand names of what Panera uses it won't taste the exact same anyways. Reading all the previous reviewers about the nutmeg was getting me nervous but I wanted to try the receipe as written and I did and I was worrying for nothing. The flavors were outstanding. The only thing I changed was I grated the carrot instead of julienned and I used my immersion blender in it for just a few seconds at the end. Everything turned out fantastic. I loved it and it is such a filling soup too. This is a soup I will be making again.
Wow! I am freaking out right now because I just made Panera's Broc/Cheddar soup in my own kitchen! It tastes exactly like their recipe. I just wish I had made bread bowls to go with it! I would give it 500 stars! It thickened up great and tasted amazing! This is a true 5 Star winner!
This recipe is ABSOLUTELY GREAT, DELICIOUS! I have made 2 or 3 times and the only thing I have changed is the fact that I use fresh brocoli that I prefer to steam and chop before using it in the recipe...the rest I do exactly as the recipe calls for...if not to follow the recipe why botter looking up for a specific recipe?
Absolutely amazing. It's a huge pet peeve of mine when people rate and change the recipes, but I'm going to have to be an offender. I took the suggestion of other reviewers and used 2% milk rather than half and half and also subbed chicken stock with chicken broth (no big deal). I used Kraft sharp cheddar cheese, but it needed more flavor so I threw in a few slices of extra sharp cheddar. I shredded the carrots and added potatoes as well. The one suggestion I would make is to cook on light covered because my veggies were a lil crunchy. After stirring and covered for about an hour (paranoid about letting it burn), it reached the optimum consistency and taste! I would definitely recommend this recipe, boycotting Panera.
I get cravings for this soup and was so happy to try it out at home. I quadrupled the recipe so I could put some in the freezer and it turned out beautifully! I chopped the broccoli in the food processor, so no need to blend after cooking. Also used freshly ground nutmeg. Perfect!
I make this at least once a month. My family loves it. I also replace the broccoli with asparagus instead and it comes out awesome!
I have to stress what other reviews say about the importance of your cheese choice. I used whatever was on sale at the grocery store...and it turned out that the soup was very, very bland. Next time I'll have to try something with much more flavor.
Thumbs up for this soup at our house. 2% milk worked well and also thinned the soup a bit (personal preference). Used Cabot Vermont Cheddar for extra taste - and the nutmeg certainly made it special. Loved the addition of carrots too - anyway to get veggies into the family is greatly appreciated.
Excellent! used 1 cup 1/2 and 1/2 and 1 cup 1% and it was a good consistency.
This is the best recipe for broccoli soup I have came across!! I do not understand why people search for recipes just to change everything about it and then complain and rate low because it wasn't as good as they had hoped. First off why not try the recipe first and then make changes the second time if any are needed. The flour in this recipe is very very important. The first time I made the soup it was so creamy and delicious, I raved about it and my boyfriend begged me to make it again a week later so I did but this time the creaminess was this weird texture and I thought I had everything in the pot so I though maybe the cheese was no good or something since it had completely separated from the soup base. I gave it another try last week and the same thing, the cheese separated from the soup base. Came back to this recipe sine it worked so well the first time and realized I forgot the flour. Please learn from my repeated mistake and don't forget the flour. I have tried the Cracker Barrel Extra Sharp Cheddar, the Tillamook Extra Sharp and the smoked sharped and liked the Tillamook extra sharp the best. :) Yummmmmmmy this soup is amazing!! Thank you for being so selfless and not keeping it to yourself.
Haven't tried Panera's but this is hands down the best broccoli soup I've ever had. I used whole wheat flour instead of regular as it gives a nuttier flavour to the roux, just personal preference. I grated the carrots and minced the broccoli florets very fine. Also added just a bit more stock to thin it out. I tasted it before adding the cheese and it was still fantastic. AMAZING soup.
Fantastic! I have never had Panera's version but this one is great regardless. I make it exactly as written.
Very good, I had no issues with it being too thick, but I did keep a lid on the pot for the most part so that may be a factor for those who said it was too thick. I had an issue with the nutmeg not mixing in good so I had a big clump in one bite, so next time I'll either need to be more careful to mix it better or just skip the nutmeg altogether. I have no idea what Panera's tastes like, but I'll definitely be making this again.
OMG! This is so good! Panera's soup is what got me started eating broccoli and this is almost identical except better texture. You know you are biting into something with this soup. Thanks so much! I will never go to Panera again!
This recipe is GREAT! I followed the recipe with a few minor changes: I used 2% milk and I didn't have fresh broccoli so I thawed out a bag of Birds Eye Steam Fresh frozen broccoli and put it in a food processor before adding it to the soup. I accidently forgot the chicken stock when told so I added it in later on and it still turned out well. Also it took longer than 20 min for the soup to thicken so in a separate bowl I mixed about 1/4 flour with 1/4 chicken broth together then tossed it into the soup and everything began to thicken. I omitted the nutmeg only because I didn't think it needed it. This is definitely a keeper.
This was very delicious! I followed the recipe exactly. I am not sure why some people are saying it is like cheese dip consistency. It was great! Also, I think for those that say it has too much carrot taste perhaps they are using one cup of shredded for the one cup julienned. I shredded the carrot, but just used 1/2 cup instead. I used the nutmeg and I didn't notice it. SO I think it adds to it, but doesn't overwhelm. I had meant to double it like one user suggested, but forgot and am quite bummed that I didn't!
Very tasty soup! I added one large clove of garlic, 1/4 c diced celery and one grated carrot with the onion and sautéed. After adding the broccoli, I put the lid on which created some condensation and it thinned the soup some, and mashed the broccoli some with a masher and the soup came with a nice consistency. I will be making this one again.
This soup was the perfect consistancy. Broccoli flavor was right on (used frozen and carrots). Allow for extra time for frozen. Measured as recipe stated but it needed something. We will make again tomorrow for Thanksgiving dinner party but will substitute one part chicken broth with dry white wine. For adults, extra sharp cheddar would be more desireable. If you love your blender, by all means use it. Otherwise, use an electric blending stick to get the consistancy without the mess!
This soup is so good ! I've made it twice now, once with frozen Broccoli and once with fresh, both worked equally well. Both times I used 2% Milk instead of Half and Half. Yummy ! Thanks for sharing your recipe
Overall, this was pretty tasty. I listened to a previous reviewer that said that the broccoli wasn't cooked enough in the 20-25 minutes, so I steamed it for a few minutes beforehand, and I wish I hadn't. It is yummy but the consistency is different from Panera's... not as smooth.