Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup (Printable)

Creamy, comforting soup with tender broccoli, carrots, and rich sharp cheddar cheese. Perfect for chilly days.

# What You Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 4 cups broccoli florets, chopped
02 - 1 cup carrots, julienned
03 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
04 - 2 cloves garlic, minced

→ Dairy

05 - 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
06 - 2 cups whole milk
07 - 1 cup heavy cream
08 - 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

→ Base & Liquid

09 - 4 cups vegetable broth
10 - 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

→ Seasonings

11 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
12 - 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
13 - 1/4 teaspoon paprika
14 - Pinch of ground nutmeg

# How To Make:

01 - Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add chopped onion and cook until soft and translucent, approximately 4 minutes.
02 - Stir in minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
03 - Sprinkle flour over the onion mixture and stir constantly for 2 minutes to form a smooth roux.
04 - Gradually whisk in vegetable broth, stirring continuously to ensure no lumps form.
05 - Add broccoli and carrots to the pot. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes until vegetables are tender.
06 - Reduce heat to low. Stir in milk and heavy cream, heating gently without bringing to a boil.
07 - Add grated cheddar cheese one handful at a time, stirring until completely melted and smooth.
08 - Season soup with salt, pepper, paprika, and nutmeg. Adjust seasonings as needed.
09 - For a smoother texture, use an immersion blender to partially puree the soup, leaving some vegetable chunks if preferred.
10 - Taste and adjust final seasoning. Ladle into bowls and serve hot with crusty bread.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It tastes indulgent and creamy but comes together faster than ordering takeout, which means you can actually feed people on a weeknight.
  • The sharp cheddar is the real star here, and there's something deeply satisfying about watching it melt into silky ribbons that make the whole pot taste like comfort.
  • You can make it as smooth or chunky as you want, and somehow it works beautifully either way.
02 -
  • Never let the soup boil once the cream is in—boiling breaks the emulsion and leaves you with grainy, separated soup that no amount of stirring fixes, so low and slow is the only speed that works.
  • Grate your own cheese instead of using pre-shredded; the anti-caking powder in bagged cheese prevents it from melting smoothly and you end up with a gritty texture that's disappointing.
  • Add the cheese off the heat or at very low heat—high temperatures make it separate and get stringy, which is fine for nachos but not what you want here.
03 -
  • Buy good cheese and good broth—these two ingredients determine about eighty percent of how the finished soup tastes, so don't economize here.
  • Make sure your roux is truly cooked before adding broth, because raw flour tastes starchy and thin even if the soup looks creamy.
  • Immersion blenders save cleanup and give you control, but if you don't have one, a regular blender works fine—just blend it in batches and be careful with hot liquid.
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