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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
Wonderful winter warm up soup. I used a hand held blender but it didn’t puree it enough for my family. I used the stand up blender for the left overs and it brought the experience up to restaurant quality!
Hey Deb,
Awesome! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan
Y’all, this was really good. Ate every bit of it. Followed recipe.
Hey Rebecca,
Awesome! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan
Delicious but used 1/2 the amount of broth. 8 cups made it way too thin!! 4 was perfect!
Hey Rebecca,
Awesome! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan
Yes! I agree! I will use less chicken stock next time. Maybe 5-6 cups.
Healthy, tasty & comforting for a chill January day. Delicious melding of flavors. Uses pureed cauliflower & coconut milk in place of heavy cream. Perfect lo-fat version.
Hi Mary,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
Made this last week and we loved it! Such great flavor and super comforting and creamy! A great winter soup!
Hi Justine,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
This soup is everything great about broccoli cheddar soup with none of the bad stuff. Delicious.
Hi Sara,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
Can you freeze this soup?
Hi Debbie,
Yes, that will work well for you. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Once again, your recipe did not disappoint! I am loving your recipes. My future daughter n law introduced to me to your site.
So thankful she did!!
Hi Theresa,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
Made this tonight and it was sooooooo good!!!! Love that it’s so full of veggies and healthy but DELICIOUS! Thank you, Tieghan!
Hey Tracy,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
This was amazing!! So glad I found this.
I was wondering, does this soup freeze well? Unsure with the coconut milk added.
Hi Julia,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
This soup is divine!! Tasted and it was divine even before adding the cheese. Will make this often. Thank you for this one!!
Hi Suzi,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
Okay. This was fabulous. I love broccoli cheddar soup but don’t usually eat it because the dairy will bother me, but this was just as (if not more) delicious than what I remember, and I felt great after! I used chicken bone broth to add some protein to it and ate it with a chunk of sourdough. Yum!!
ALSO I used my stick blender instead of transferring it to a regular blender in batches. Stick blenders are game changers
Awesome!!
Hi Emily,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
I made this, and was a little disappointed that it didn’t come out like the photo. 🙁
I didn’t put the cauliflower, as I just didn’t have any, but the overall taste of the soup was very good.
Hey Nadia,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try. Sorry I am not sure what you mean it didn’t come out like the photos? Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
The cauliflower is the whole body of the soup. If you didn’t use it of course it didn’t come out like the photo, it was probably very thin.
I just made this recipe today. It’s absolutely wonderful. I used chicken broth that’s reduced sodium so I needed to add more salt at the end. I will Definitelymake this again and now I need to try your pretzel recipe to go with it.
Your recipes are awesome enjoying everyone I’ve made.
Hi Francine,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
Excited to try this. Can you share the pretzel recipe too?
Hi Missy,
Yes, it is already linked above:)
https://fett-weg.today/hard-cider-pretzels/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> I hope you love the recipes! xTieghan
Loved this recipe! Really so much healthier and has a good flavor. My husband said he wouldn’t eat it and then had 2 bowls. I did not have to add extra liquid, and only added 5 cups of broth to the soup. Arguably didn’t need the coconut milk, it was already super creamy. Reheats well and with some crusty sourdough, delicious!
Hey Rachael,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you for making it! xxT
Hi, could I omit the flour in this recipe or would that change the flavor/texture? Thanks!
Hi there,
The flour helps to create a thick, creamy soup, I would keep it if you can. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan