Broccoli Cheddar Soup is quick and extra cheesy with an amazing creamy broth and tons of flavor.
If you like Panera’s broccoli cheese soup, you’ll LOVE this homemade version. It comes together in about 30 minutes making it the perfect weeknight meal topped with croutons alongside some bread or dinner rolls.
Ingredients
BROCCOLI I use fresh broccoli but since it’s cooked down, frozen works too (no need to thaw first). Once cooked, you’ll want to reserve a bit of the broccoli and chop it to add some texture to the soup.
CHEESE This soup has 3 kinds of cheese, cream cheese for a creamy consistency and cheddar and parm for a punch of flavor. For the best flavor, be sure to use sharp cheddar.
BASE This base of this soup is made with broth and just a bit of cream. The broccoli is blended with the broth to add some body to the soup and it’s thickened with a tiny bit of cornstarch.
How to Make Broccoli Cheddar Soup
The best homemade broccoli cheese soup needs just a few fresh ingredients!
- Cook onion and garlic. Add broccoli, broth and seasonings (per recipe below) and simmer until tender.
- Remove a bit of the broccoli and chop it, blend the rest of the soup.
- Stir in cream and cream cheese and simmer a few minutes. Mix in the cheeses and the chopped broccoli. Enjoy!
KITCHEN TIP
Add the cream cheese while on the heat so it melts.
Shredded cheese can separate and curdle if overheated. Just like with cheese sauce or mac and cheese, remove the soup from the heat before stirring in the cheese. The heat from the soup will melt it and your soup will be smooth and creamy.
Variations
- I prefer the flavor of chicken broth but vegetable broth will work too.
- Sub out the cheese for your favorites, we love sharp cheddar. A milder cheese or cheddar will have a less cheesy flavor.
- Add a diced potato or even cauliflower or asparagus along with the broccoli.
- If you don’t want to use cream, evaporated milk works well. You can use regular milk but might need a bit extra cornstarch to thicken the soup.
Easy Hearty Soups
- Potato Leek Soup – ultimate comfort food
- Homemade French Onion Soup – classic recipe!
- Sweet Potato Soup – savory & creamy soup
- Creamy Asparagus Soup – delicious hot or cold!
- Homemade Lentil Soup – Hearty and healthy.
- Borscht Recipe (Beet Soup) – Family favorite
- Easy Cauliflower Soup – so easy to make
Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 4 cups broccoli fresh or frozen
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon thyme
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 ½ cups light cream or evaporated milk
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 4 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- ⅓ cup fresh parmesan cheese shredded
Instructions
- In a saucepan, cook onion and garlic in butter over medium heat until tender.
- Add broccoli, chicken broth, thyme and salt & pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until broccoli is tender, about 6 minutes. Add cream cheese and cook 2 minutes more to soften.
- Remove 1 cup of broccoli, coarsely chop and set aside. Using an immersion blender, blend remaining soup.
- Combine cream and cornstarch.
- Bring soup to a boil and whisk in cream mixture. Simmer until thickened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Remove from heat, stir in 1 ¾ cups of the cheddar cheese, all of the parmesan cheese & reserved chopped vegetables. Garnish with additional cheese and serve immediately.
Notes
Other vegetables can be added to this recipe including cauliflower, red bell pepper and/or carrots.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Side Dish, Soup
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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I just made this soup with no changes to recipe. It’s now my favorite broccoli cheese soup recipe.
I just made this recipe and it turned out amazing! Thank you for a great recipe!
I can’t wait to make this
Turned out great even with a number of changes, I believe due to the perfect ratio of broth, dairy and cornstarch. Just chopped a couple cups of broccoli very small, didn’t bother blending anything. Greek yogurt cream cheese, 1 cup milk+1/2 cup whipping cream, and doubled the garlic. Make sure you only use freshly shredded cheese (not pre-shredded with separators) or it won’t melt well. My new favorite broccoli cheddar soup.
Nicole, how do you make Greek Yogurt Cream Cheese?
Sounds YUMMY! Regular cream cheese bothers my stomach, but I can eat Greek Yogurt (such as Fage) just fine.
Thanks!
The soup was easy to make and very delicious! Will be sharing the recipe with my friends.
This was the first time I ever made Cheddar Broccoli soup. I followed your recipe to the Tee. It was amazing! My wife and I loved it and so did our youngest daughter. Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
You are very welcome Ben! So glad everyone loves this soup!
Sorry, but this was a big no-go for me. My first of sooo many Spend with Pennies I’ve made that didn’t turn out.
Made this tonight for dinner, following the recipe exactly verbatim- no changes or modifications. Grated my own parmesan, let cream cheese come to room temp and even measured everything (not something I usually do when making soup) but the cream cheese never fully incorporated, no matter how much I whisked.
The flavor was pretty bland, too- not very cheesy or broccoli-forward.
I’m still a BIG fan of Holly’s and I have many recipes of hers that I do love!
Sorry to hear that you didn’t enjoy this soup Elcee. Thank you for trying it!
Can this be reheated the next day or will it mess up because of the cheese?
This reheats well on low.
So delicious! Thanks, Holly, for another 5 star recipe! I was nervous because I usually avoid thyme – it is not one of my favorite spices, but it really works in this recipe. I used fat-free half and half for the light cream since that is what I had on hand and it turned out great. I served with homemade crusty rolls on the side and it was all so good!
I’m so glad you loved it Mary, crusty rolls would be the perfect side for this soup!
My go to recipe for cheesy broccoli soup. It is wonderfully delicious. Even my picky 6 year old says “yum I love this soup” when i make it. ☺
So glad your family loves it Carrie!
Really good soup! I used evaporated milk so I could freeze some of it.. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re very welcome Terry. Happy you loved it!
This soup is delicious! Just curious about the nutrition info below the recipe. Is it per serving or for the whole recipe? Doing WW and trying to determine points. If per serving, what amount is considered a serving?
Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it Cindee. The nutritional information is for 1/6th of the recipe.
Hi, I made this soup and it is delicious! I was wondering if the nutrition information is for the whole recipe or just a serving, and if a serving what do you consider a serving? I cup? Cup and a half?
Thanks!
The nutritional information is per serving which is approximately 1.25 cups of soup.
Delicious!! Rich, creamy and cheesy! Very easy to make.
I didn’t have and immersion blender, but we like our veggies chunky anyway!
Yummy!
Do you have a recipe for Cream of Broccoli soup. I feel that putting cheese in with the broccoli translates to: “I don’t like the taste of broccoli!”
This soup still has a delicious broccoli taste. You can definitely leave the cheese out if you prefer as well. I have enjoyed this soup before adding the cheese and it is still so yummy!