Cheesy Vegetable Chowder {AKA Broccoli Cheese Potato Soup}

By á-72200

Ingredients

• 5 1/2 Tbsp butter, divided
• 1 1/3 cups chopped carrots (about 3)
• 1 cup chopped celery (2 stalks)
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 small)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 3 1/2 cups peeled and cubed russet potatoes, cut 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch thick (2 large)
• 3 cups chopped broccoli florets (from about 2 heads)
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 3 cups milk (preferably 1% or 2%)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (8 oz)
• 1/3 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese (1 oz)

Details

Servings 6
Adapted from cookingclassy.com

Preparation

Step 1

Love love LOVE this soup! What you are basically getting here is creamy potato soup meets broccoli cheese soup and it is unbelievably delicious! Definitely one of my top three favorite soups and that’s saying something because I have sooo many soup recipes that I love. This has even taken over the place of my traditional broccoli cheese soup recipe and my potato soup recipe, new top contender!

Better yet my whole family couldn’t get enough of this soup! My kids seem to become pickier about food by the day but they had no problem quickly finishing this one off. I love that it is a blend of two of the best soups, so you get that creamy potato soup goodness plus and abundance of broccoli and cheese flavor. We also really liked how it’s heartier than a traditional broccoli cheese soup with more substance to it because of all the additional veggies. Definitely adding this one to the rotation!

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, melt 1 1/2 Tbsp of the butter. Add carrots, celery and onion and saute 3 - 4 minutes. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Stir in chicken broth, potatoes and thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium, cover with lid and cook 15 minutes. Stir in broccoli and cook 5 minutes longer or until veggies are tender.

Meanwhile, melt remaining 4 Tbsp butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour and cook, whisking constantly 1 minute. While whisking vigorously, slowly pour in milk (whisk well until no lumps remain). Cook stirring constantly until mixture begins to gently boil and thicken, stir in heavy cream. Remove from heat and once all veggies are tender pour into the soup and stir. Remove from heat and stir in cheddar and parmesan cheese until melted. Serve warm.

: Love how you blended the two soups. I bet this does taste amazing. Pinning and putting it on my list to try. Perfect cold weather food.

: Yes I think 2% sharp would be a good alternative, I already tried using as little butter as possible here (other wise no roux would really work and veggies wouldn’t saute well) – you could replace 2 Tbsp with olive oil though. Then you could definitely use half and half in place of the cream and if you don’t care about a lot of creaminess you could even omit it. I hope that helps!

Beth: Looks delicious! Think I’ll make it tomorrow! Do you think it would work to replace half of the milk with veggie or chicken stock?

Chris: This looks awesome! I would use 1% milk for sure, 2% sharp cheddar cheese that I grated myself (the bagged shredded cheeses are gross), and evaporated milk in place of heavy cream as ways to reduce fat in this recipe. If it is too thin, you could add some instant mashed potato flakes to thicken it up.

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: Looks delicious! Think I'll make it tomorrow! Do you think it would work to replace half of the milk with …