This Broccoli Soup Recipe is pure enjoyment for spring and summer when you want the stodgy soups of the winter to go to sleep and lighter, more elegant soups to emerge. The soup’s herbaceous notes are spot on to brighten your taste buds and have you looking forward to the coming bounty of seasonal springlike meals.
Want more springlike soups to indulge in? Try our Leftover Party Tray Soup (fun at any time of the year), Julia Child’s Vichyssoise, Best Lobster Bisque, or Easy Vietnamese Pho.
I have a high standard when it comes to soup; we eat a lot of it, so for this soup I didn’t want that chunky cheddar-laced broccoli cheddar soup that everyone has had a million times. Don’t get me wrong, that is a great soup for the winter, but now spring is coming. This soup still has all that is wanted for comfort food but just lightened up a bit.
So how does it taste?: Fresh, herby, and savory with plenty of broccoli flavor.
What color is it?: Fresh, lively springtime green, a pretty green color.
What is the texture?: Velvety smooth, no lumps, no chunks, just pure, luxuriously silky smoothness.
Is this soup healthy?: Yes, especially if you don’t ladle lots of heavy cream on top. I give you many alternatives to the cream, which, of course, is divine, but you know!
Helpful Items For This Recipe
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Vitamix Blender, 48 oz (expensive but the best!)
Hand Immersion Blender (it works, but your soup won’t be as smooth)
What are the Ingredients for Broccoli Soup?
Easy to find ingredients that are in any grocery store. All the fresh items are wonderful and in season in the spring. To keep the soup vegan, omit any of the dairy options that are simply toppings anyway.
Ingredients
Olive oil – Extra virgin, of course, but you can use a lighter oil like canola, too, if you prefer.
Yellow onion (diced) – Simple, easy-to-find yellow onion; if you have a sweet onion hanging around, that would work great too.
Garlic (crushed) – Use fresh, not jarred; you will get so much more flavor. You don’t need to chop this super fine as well as the onion, as you will be pureeing the soup after it cooks.
Vegetable stock – If you don’t have vegetable stock, you can use chicken, but personally, I like to keep this soup vegetarian; it just tastes lighter. Make sure to use a lower salt choice as you don’t want this soup over-salted.
Heads of broccoli (chopped into broccoli florets) – Lots of fresh, delicious broccoli, such an easy-to-find ingredient and the star of the show!! You can use some of the stems, too, if you need to make up more of the broccoli for the soup.
Spinach (loosely packed) – Another flavor booster, and it adds a lovely green color too.
Mint leaves (loosely packed) – You may be surprised with this herb but trust me, you will taste it, but it is not overpowering at all and just gives a freshness to the soup like no other herb. This is a great use for this herb if you have it in abundance in the backyard.
Parsley leaves (loosely packed) – Another fresh green flavor booster and easy to find.
Salt and pepper to taste – Whatever salt you prefer, and a fresh grind of black pepper.
Heavy cream and black pepper to serve (optional) – Alternatives to the heavy cream are half and half, milk, sour cream, yogurt, etc., or omit the creaminess altogether. Any of these alternatives will give you a creamy texture and make the soup more of a cream of broccoli soup. If you really want that cheddar flavor, now is the time to sprinkle a bit on top. Use sharp cheddar cheese to get the most flavor.
How to Make Broccoli Soup
This soup is well under that 30 minutes meal mark that so many of our recipes are. It only takes 20 minutes to pull together.
Add the olive oil to a large soup pot or Dutch oven and heat on a medium heat setting. Fry the onion until softened – about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and fry for another minute, stirring constantly.
Then add the broccoli and vegetable stock, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and leave to cook for 6 minutes.
Lastly, into the pot, add the spinach and some salt and pepper for seasonings to taste and simmer for another 3 minutes.
Transfer the soup to a jug blender, add the mint and parsley, and blitz until completely smooth. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender, but the soup won’t be velvety smooth as with a blender.
Serve with a little heavy cream drizzled on top and a sprinkle of black pepper (optional).
How do you Thicken Broccoli Soup?
This soup is thickened with broccoli alone; no need for a roux or flour to start with. This then keeps the soup completely gluten-free.
How To Store Broccoli Soup
Storage: Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. The soup will darken with storage because of the mint but will still taste just as delicious.
Freezing is better if you don’t add the cream swirl and do that upon serving again. As mentioned above, it will darken in color.
Substitutions for our Broccoli Soup
Do you want to change this soup up to make it your own? Sure, you can add the following ideas for a change-up to the original recipe.
Substitutions/add-ins: Feel free to add in chopped ham or a little shredded cheddar cheese for some extra protein.
Top with garlicky homemade croutons. Adding a few fresh herbs or fried crispy onions would give the soup a whole new look and taste.
Crumbled crispy bacon on top or some spices, try your favorite blend like a Montreal Steak Seasoning, or simply paprika would be delicious too.
Finally, you can add in nuts and seeds but don’t forget those crusty buns, sourdough toast slices, crostinis, crackers, Parmesan crisps, tortilla chips, or whatever you have that is crunchy and delicious to dip into the soup.
What to Serve With Broccoli Soup?
Besides all the lovely additions mentioned above, you may want to have a side dish to go with your soup, also. This soup by itself will make a nice meal for, say lunch, but you may want to have something with it for dinner.
Broccoli Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 2 heads of broccoli chopped into florets
- 1 cup spinach loosely packed
- ¼ cup mint leaves loosely packed
- ¼ cup parsley leaves loosely packed
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Heavy cream and black pepper to serve optional
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a large soup pot and heat on a medium setting. Fry the onion until softened – about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and fry for another minute, stirring constantly.
- Then add the broccoli and vegetable stock, bring to a boil then, reduce to a simmer, and leave to cook for 6 minutes.
- Lastly, into the pot, add the spinach and some salt and pepper to taste and simmer for another 3 minutes.
- Transfer the soup to a jug blender, add the mint and parsley, and blitz until completely smooth. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender, but the soup won’t be velvety smooth as with a blender.
- Serve with a little heavy cream drizzled on top and a sprinkle of black pepper (optional).
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