These days, my most favoured piece of kitchen equipment is the immersion blender. Cooking during a lockdown is indeed challenging for
It's April and at this time of the year, I'm usually busy rummaging through recipe books to find an apt recipe to celebrate the blog's birthday. Yes, we're 8 years old today.
However, this year, with the lockdown in place, I wanted to make something that was simple and which didn't need too many shmancy ingredients. What would be simpler than a soup?
I usually start by sautéing some onion, making a roux and then throwing in a few veggies along with stock, milk or water. Once the veggies are cooked, the immersion blender does its job and that's it.
So a broccoli and cheddar cheese soup was on my mind for some time and as luck would have it, the day before the lockdown, I got the husband to pick up a broccoli for me. Of course the man finds the biggest one possible and brings it home. Looks like he had broccoli cheddar soup on his mind too so no complaints.
I followed my usual soup formula using broccoli florets, chopped onions and garlic, a carrot, some chicken stock, a little milk and lots of water. At dinnertime, after the soup was warmed, some grated cheddar cheese was stirred through. My my...excellent potage! And you don't really need anything to serve it with. It's pretty filling on its own.
Broccoli cheddar cheese soup
Ingredients
1 small onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 stalk celery, diced (optional)
500 gm cleaned broccoli florets, include the stalk too
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
2 tbsps butter
2 tbsps oil
3 tbsps plain flour (whole wheat is also fine)
1 cup stock - chicken or veg
1 cup milk
1 cup water
Salt and pepper to season
100 gm cheddar cheese, grated
Method
Heat butter and oil in a large pan.
Sauté the diced onions and when light golden, add in the garlic and celery.
Stir in the flour and when it no longer smells raw, pour in the stock, milk and water.
When it starts to boil, add in broccoli florets and carrots.
Turn down the heat and cook it for about 15 -20 minutes with the lid off until the veggies become tender.
Adjust seasoning, add lots of pepper if you like more spice.
Remove the pot from the heat and when it cools a little, put your immersion blender to work and blend the mix.
It's nice if the soup is not over-processed, a few chunks here and there give it more body.
Warm the soup before serving, stir the cheese through and check seasoning once more.
Don't boil the soup after adding the cheese - it might curdle.
If you like the soup hotter, sauté a couple of green chillies along with the onions.
Stay safe y'all.
