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Welcoming these chilly winter days with this Lighter Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup. It’s cozy, creamy, secretly full of vegetables, and totally delicious. This soup is made simply in one large pot with puréed cauliflower (to make it creamy), sharp cheddar cheese, and plenty of broccoli. Plus a little bit of coconut milk gives this soup an even creamier texture. It’s such a delicious healthier take on my favorite broccoli cheddar soup.
I’ve definitely shared my love for broccoli cheddar soup many times over the years. It’s one of those soups that for me, brings back all the best memories. I’ve loved a bowl broccoli cheddar since the days of my mom taking me out for lunch, way back when we lived in Cleveland.
It wasn’t that often that we’d go out for lunch, but when I could convince my mom to take us to Panera bread, it was always the best. The boys would just get bagels, but mom and I would get soup. Either the broccoli cheddar or chicken noodle, but broccoli cheddar was the favorite.
I haven’t had Panera since probably 6th grade, but I remember it being creamy, cheesy, and so delicious. I’ve loved a bowl of broccoli cheddar soup ever since. I feel like a lot of you have similar stories. It’s such an all around loved soup.
The idea
I already have a good broccoli cheddar soup on HBH. But I wanted to create a healthier version that was still just a creamy and delicious.
I thought I could mix in a cauliflower purée to add creaminess, plus an extra serving of vegetables too. It worked perfectly, and you’d never know that cauliflower is even in the soup!
Details
This soup is easy, but it does involve one extra step that a traditional broccoli cheddar soup doesn’t include, a double purée.
Start out simply with an onion, carrots, and broth. Add a head of cauliflower and let the soup simmer until the cauliflower is super tender. Purée this mix until it’s super creamy. You don’t want any chunks of cauliflower left over.
If you enjoy chunks of carrot in your soup, be sure to pull those out before puréing the cauliflower.
Return the creamy base to the stove, then in goes the fresh broccoli. You’ll need to cook the broccoli until it’s tender too, then do another round of blending. This time, don’t blend the soup all the way. I love to leave some chunks of broccoli.
Next, add a little cheddar cheese. Then add a splash of canned coconut milk to make the soup perfectly creamy…but without any heavy cream!
I’d highly recommend serving this soup with a side of crusty bread or pretzels. You need something for dipping!
Alright, and with that, I’m going to leave you all to it. If your week needs some warming soup, this is it. I’m actually beyond excited to make this again soon!
Looking for other soup recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup
Creamy French Onion and Mushroom Soup
Instant Pot Pesto Zuppa Toscana
Healthier Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Vegetable Soup
Lastly, if you make this lighter Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Lighter Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 1116 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves (or 2 teaspoons dried)
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, or gluten free flour
- 6 cups low sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 4 cups broccoli florets
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked (or regular) paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne use to taste
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1/2 cup canned full fat coconut milk
- 1-2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- 1. Melt together the olive oil and butter in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and thyme, and cook until fragrant, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook until golden, about 2 minutes, then gradually whisk in the broth. Add the cauliflower and bring to a boil. Cover, and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, until the cauliflower is tender. 2. Transfer the soup to a blender and purée until smooth. Return the soup to the pot. If needed add 1-2 cups water, then the broccoli, bay leaves, paprika, cayenne, and a large pinch each of salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, uncovered, until the broccoli is tender, about 10 minutes.3. Remove the bay leaves and blend the soup in batches until the broccoli is finely chopped, but small chunks still remain. 4. Return the soup to the stove and set over low heat. Stir in the coconut milk and cheese until melted and creamy. Taste, and add salt and pepper as needed. If the soup is thick, add broth to thin. Ladle into bowls and top with a little extra cheddar and fresh thyme. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on January 5, 2022
AWFUL
Love this recipe and make it all the time! Serve with crust bread!! I also use cauliflower rice for a quicker recipe.
Hey Mindy,
Thank you so much! I am thrilled to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you! Thanks for giving it a try!
I’ve been making this soup on repeat for a while and I found that I don’t need the cheese or coconut milk. It’s super tasty just with the vegetables and broth.
Hey there,
Happy Monday! I’m grateful you made this recipe and for your comment, so glad it was enjoyed!
Sorry but how is this 1,116 calories per serving?I’m so confused, haha thanks in advance. With those ingredients listed it should be closer to 330 calories for 6 servings.
Hi Danielle,
I always recommend that if the nutritional information is important to you, you use your own personal calculator. Ours is automatic and controlled by google. It’s not something we’d prefer to be using. We are required to. I’m sorry for the trouble, we do our best! Hope you enjoy the recipe! xT
Well I made it tonight and it’s absolutely delicious! So thanks for getting back to me ☺️
Thanks so much, Danielle!!
I’ve made this quite a few times- today’s the first time I used smoked cheddar since that’s what I had on hand – I will be using that from here on out!!! Really complemented all the flavours and upped this soup game even more! So delicious thanks 🙂
Hey Collette,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, love to hear it turned out nicely for you! xx
Terrific recipe for a winter cold snap. My family enjoyed the subtle flavor – this soup is creamy and cheesy without being OTT or giving anyone in my family a stomachache. I thickened it with 1:1 flour and it worked beautifully. Wish I had time to make the pretzels to go with it! My recipe notes say “Best broccoli cheese soup we have ever had”!
Hey Julie,
Fantastic! Love to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Have the best week:) xxT
Delicious healthy soup for the cold winter months. My kids had no idea that there was cauliflower in it!!
Hey Jennie,
Awesome! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have a nice Sunday:) xx
I agree with another comment-very bland. I added onion powder and garlic powder (since everything had already be sautéed). Lots of salt and pepper. More smoked paprika, some Gouda…a dash of soy sauce…now it is pretty good. I like the idea of the cauliflower in there, but with the carrot and the coconut mild, it was sweet…
Hi Judy,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, sorry to hear you didn’t love it. xx
Can you use Half and Half if you don’t have canned coconut milk?
Hi Jenny,
Sure, I think that would work nicely for you. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
FYI: I don’t think the nutrition information of 1116 kcal per serving is correct. I know this will vary depending on the particular ingredients, quantities used, but I used a separate calorie counter and got roughly 300 calories per serving.
Literally aweful. There was no flavor at all. It was watery and not edible.
Hi Troy,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed. Please let me know if there is something that I can help with! xx