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Thursday, October 8, 2015

So Easy Broccoli Soup

While I tried to come up with a better title, the one seemed to perfectly describe this soup recipe. It was just that — so easy. There's no step-by-step directions for this soup recipe as far as measurements.


Several times before heading out on a road trip (sometimes unexpectedly), we've had unused vegetables in the fridge. Not to waste them, I've usually blanched  and frozen them; usually green beans and broccoli.

That said, I had two bags of frozen broccoli that and a friend suggested I make fresh soup and crockpot broccoli soup seemed a great idea — and an easy one too (did I mention that earlier?). 

An online search, as always,  produced so many recipes that included milk and/or cheese. My goal was a simple vs. rich soup (as in less fattening). As many of you know through previous posts, we're cutting calories and using a lot of South Beach (diet) recipes from our collection. Alas, this one was not in any of the recipe books.

Here's what I did:
Took the frozen broccoli from the freezer and got the crockpot from the pantry.

Sliced a small onion then sauteed in a TBSP of olive oil adding in a couple TBSPs of chopped garlic. Removed onion and garlic from pan when softened and put into crockpot.

By then, the broccoli had  started thawing but it needed a quick rinse under cold water to separate the florets. The florets were drained and put in the pan where the onion had been cooked to roast it a bit. I had to do this in a several batches.
Then the broccoli went into the crockpot. 
Next came spices — all approximate measures, which can be increased or decrease according to taste: 

1 tsp of cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1 TBSP cilantro
Freshly ground pepper
Sea salt
Low-sodium chicken broth (1 carton)

Fresh chopped cilantro or parsley would also work well. 
I set the crockpot on LOW and let everything cook all day. The softer the broccoli gets, the easier it is to puree. Putting the hot soup mixture into a blender would be a challenge, so I used an immersion blender and pureed in the crockpot. 

Adjust seasonings to your taste and enjoy.

This soup will keep refrigerated several days — we'll enjoy it for lunch now that cooler fall days have arrived.

What's your favorite recipe(s) for leftover veggies?

7 comments:

Lois Evensen said...

Looks yummy! It's soup season once again, too. We generally eat most of the veggies we make at each meal. Whatever we don't eat is shared among three pups who all love healthy food.

Ginnie said...

Appetizing soup. I use up veggies and stuff in many varieties of Quiche. I actually had an avocado that was about to turn brown and I diced it and added it to an onion and egg quiche...turned out fine !

William Kendall said...

It sounds delicious. My mother would tend to put leftover vegetables into a quiche or a meat pie.

Connie said...

That sounds good. Some hot soup sounds perfect for dinner tonight.

DeniseinVA said...

Oh yes, I love broccoli soup and this looks delicious!

Michelle said...

One of my favorite soups. This recipe looks so good!

Emma Springfield said...

This looks so easy. You know I am going to try it.