Better-Than-Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Creamy, cheesy, flavored with butter and freshly shredded cheddar cheese…can you think of a better way to eat broccoli? This broccoli cheddar soup is true cold weather comfort food; it’s hearty, easy, and quick–perfect for weeknight dinners or a snow day lunch. If you’re a fan of Panera’s broccoli cheese soup, you’re going to love this one! My recipe starts with a simple roux for a thick and creamy final product. Don’t be intimidated by this! If you’ve made my baked mac and cheese, (insanely popular) potato soup or chicken corn chowder, you’ve done this before. After melting the butter and sautéing the onion, we’ll simply whisk flour into the pot until it’s smooth. Then we’ll slowly whisk in the milk until the soup thickens, and that’s it! Easy, right?
Why you’ll love my recipe:
Takes just 35 minutes to make with basic ingredients.Includes tips for the perfect creamy texture.Has a balanced flavor that lets the broccoli shine.Pairs nicely with crusty bread, biscuits, dinner rolls, or garlic knots.
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients that I use in my broccoli cheese soup (ignore the two garlic powders in the photo above–pretend one is onion powder! 😉):
Broccoli. I prepare the broccoli much the same way that I do for my broccoli salad. I buy a pound of broccoli and then chop off the stems and cut the florets into small pieces which I’ll then go over briefly with a large knife in a mincing motion. Check out the photo below for an example.Onion. A yellow onion is my preference, but a sweet onion (a great choice in many soups, like my French onion soup) or a white onion would work well here, too.Carrots. Grate your own or buy pre-shredded “matchstick” carrots from the store.Cheddar cheese. Do NOT use pre-shredded cheese as it will not melt properly or smoothly! Instead, grate your own. I recommend buying 16 oz of sharp cheddar and grating half into your soup, and saving the other half for serving!Ground mustard. Like in my chicken pot pie, I love using a pinch of ground mustard to add flavor to my soup. This is dry mustard powder as shown above, not prepared mustard in a tube.Chicken broth. You can substitute vegetable broth for a vegetarian soup.Whole milk and heavy cream. I usually keep both of these ingredients in my fridge so that’s what I use; however, you could substitute both of these ingredients for half and half instead.
SAM’S TIP: Don’t worry if you still have some larger pieces of broccoli remaining; we’re going to be using a blender to puree the soup before it’s finished cooking to give it a smooth and creamy texture. Puree as much or as little as you’d like to suit your own preference! Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Broccoli Cheddar Soup
SAM’S TIP: When adding your milk to create your roux, add it slowly and gradually. Adding it all at once won’t allow the soup to thicken as nicely as it should. Want the full Panera experience? Serve your soup in my homemade bread bowls! Enjoy! Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
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This recipe was originally published March of 2020. I updated the photos and text, but the recipe remains the same!
