Broccoli Cheese Soup

Broccoli cheese soup is one of my favorite soups. It was the soup that made me appreciate broccoli as a vegetable. I'm trying to find the perfect combination of veggies, cheeses, and flavors. This is a pretty good pit stop on that journey.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

What You'll Need: 

5 tbsp butter
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 cups vegetable broth
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp spicy brown mustard
2 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup half and half
3 1/2 fresh chopped broccoli pieces
2 carrots, grated
2 cups freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper

How to Make It: 

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for another two minutes. Add the flour to the mixture and cook for one minute, stirring constantly to prevent it from burning. Slowly pour in the vegetable broth, milk, and half and half. Add the Worcestershire sauce, mustard, nutmeg and bay leaves and cook, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Remove the bay leaves from the pan and add in the broccoli and carrots. Cook another 6-8 minutes or until the veggies are cooked and a bit soft. Remove the soup from the heat and add in the cheeses and salt and pepper to taste (you're probably going to want to be generous with both of them.) Cover to keep warm until ready to serve.