Delicious vegan cheese and broccoli soup is packed with all the best flavours of creamy broccoli and cheese. Enriched with wholesome potatoes and creamy white beans, this vegan cheesy soup is a sure-fire hit with all the family.
Serve with wedges of bread or crispy crackers, a little heap of shredded vegan cheese and a sprinkle of fresh chopped chives, for a delicious mid-week supper or as part of a special dinner.
Perfect for enjoying as part of an extra special Mother's Day or Father's Day meal.
Origin of cheesy cheddar broccoli soup
There are many variations of cheese soup throughout Europe, US, South America, Mexico, and some Asian countries.
During the early 1900s Italian immigrants brought broccoli over to the US as a vegetable to grow within their own gardens. By the 1930s broccoli was available to purchase. Over in the UK broccoli was an already established vegetable having been introduced back in the 18th Century.
Adding vegetables, particularly broccoli within a cheese or creamy soup is a popular variation especially in the US and UK. Cheese soup can be prepared with a stock/broth or a white sauce base where milk and flour is used. Any type of cheese can be used but Cheddar cheese is one of the most popular.
Nowadays, the well known Campbells Soup Company manufacture a variety of cheesy soups including Cheddar Cheese Soup, Nacho Cheese Soup and Broccoli Cheese Soup.
Vegan cheesy broccoli soup
None of the prepared shop-bought cheese soup flavours are suitable for a vegan or plant-based diet unless of course you can find a brand that specially prepares cheese soup without animal ingredients.
But happily a delicious vegan cheese and broccoli soup is really easy to prepare at home with the added bonus of having less fat and calories, while retaining all the tasty cheesy savoury flavours.
For this cheesy soup recipe I use Asda [UK supermarket] Free From Mature Cheddar Cheese Alternative which is a nice veggie cheese with a strong cheddar-like flavour and it also melts really well. An added bonus is that it is relatively inexpensive compared to other vegan cheese brands.
How To Prepare Vegan Cheese And Broccoli Soup
For the tough bottom stalk, peel the outer layer and dice the softer inner stalks.
Dice the potatoes into small pieces.
[alternatively instead of margarine use vegetable oil or veggie stock/broth]
Saute the veggies for 10-12 minutes with a lid half way across the pot.
Stir frequently and add small splashes of water if it looks like the veggies may stick.
Chuck in the beans and stir.
Bring to a simmer and over a medium heat cook for 15 minutes and until the potatoes are soft.
Remove the pot from the heat and sprinkle in the nutritional yeast.
Remove a few tablespoons of the soup liquid and stir this through the white miso paste to thin out the paste. [doing so prevents large clumps of miso].
Pour the miso paste into the soup. Stir well.
Or a wedge of your favourite bread.
Recipe Notes
Store leftover soup within a covered container and place in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Yes.
Freeze for up to 3-4 months.
Defrost completely before reheating.
Pour the soup into a non-stick pan and gently bring to the boil, lower the heat, and simmer for a few minutes just until the soup is piping hot.
Absolutely.
With a few considerations broccoli soup is great for gluten-free diets.
First ensure that your veggie stock/broth is free from gluten ingredients, and use a gluten-free white miso paste that has been prepared with beans and gluten-free grains such as rice.
Many white miso pastes are gluten-free and prepared with brown rice and soya beans, but do check the ingredients as some miso pastes may be prepared with barley.
Nutritional yeast flakes are generally gluten-free, but do check your vegan shredded cheese and margarine, just in case.
Of course!
Do make this recipe your own and change things up according to your families needs and preferences.
A few ideas:
* use any white bean you prefer
* white miso paste can be replaced with 1 tablespoon of tahini paste, 1-2 tablespoons soya sauce or ½-1 teaspoon mustard powder
[if your in the UK Asda supermarket has small jars of white miso paste]
* not a fan of nutritional yeast flakes? replace with shredded vegan cheese preferably a cheddar alternative [Asda, UK has their own brand of Free From Mature cheddar cheese alternative which was used for this recipe]
* for extra cheesiness and creaminess add a few scoops of vegan soft cream cheese and stir through
* broccoli can be replace with cauliflower, or use a mixture of both broccoli and cauliflower
* any type of broccoli is fine for this recipe including purple sprouting broccoli
* replace dried garlic powder for fresh garlic, or for extra garlic flavours use both
* instead of sauteing the veggies in vegan margarine, use olive oil or vegetable oil, or replace the fat with about ½ cup of veggie stock/broth [use more broth as required]
* fresh chives can be subbed for spring onions/green onions/scallions or parsley, dill, etc
* if preferred use extra nutritional yeast flakes as a garnish instead of the shredded vegan cheese
Your favourite bread or cracker is the perfect accompaniment.
A few suggestions:
* Scottish oatcakes
* Oil-free Scottish oatcakes
* Irish Soda Bread [100% wholemeal/wholewheat]
* Quick dinner rolls [3 ingredient recipe]
* American biscuits
* plain British scones
* Saltine crackers
* rice cakes/corn cakes/rye cakes [crackers]
* crunchy cracker breadsticks
* garlic bread
* focaccia
More easy vegan soup recipes
Roast pumpkin, sweet potato and red pepper soup
Old-fashioned cream of swede [rutabaga] soup
Vegan Cheese And Broccoli Soup
Equipment
- Non stick large saucepan or soup pan with lid
Ingredients
Saute veggies
- 2 tablespoon vegan margarine or vegetable oil of ½ cup veggie stock [use more stock as needed]
Soup
- 600 grams broccoli include the peeled and trimmed broccoli stalks, slice the broccoli into small florets and the stalk into small cubes
- 170 grams onion 1 medium-large, diced
- 300 grams potatoes 2 medium, diced small
- 1 can white kidney beans 400g can/15 oz, drained, or other white bean such as cannellini, haricot [navy], or butterbeans
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder or 4 fresh diced garlic cloves, diced
- 1 tablespoon white miso paste or replace with 1 tablespoon tahini or soya sauce, or ½-1 teaspoon mustard powder
- 4 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes use more if preferred, or replace with vegan shredded cheese
- 1.2 litres vegetable stock broth, hot
To garnish
- 6 tablespoon shredded vegan cheese such as a cheddar dairy-free alternative, use more if preferred
- 6 tablespoon chives chopped, or spring onions/green onions/cybees, use more if liked
Instructions
- Melt the vegan margarine in the non-stick pot. [Or if using veggie stock/broth as a fat replacement heat this ingredient up to a simmer.]
- Pop in the broccoli, potatoes, onions, and fresh or dried garlic.
- Saute for 10-12 minutes over a low-medium heat, with the pot lid covering half way across the pot. Stir frequently, and if it looks like the veggies may stick too much add a little splash of water and stir.
- Add the white beans and stir.
- Next pour in the hot vegan stock/broth and one tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Season with a little salt and pepper.
- Bring to the boil and over a medium heat simmer for 15 minutes and until the potatoes are soft.
- Remove the pot from the heat and sprinkle in the nutritional yeast flakes.
- Measure a tablespoon of white miso paste and in a small dish mix through a few tablespoons of the soup liquid just to thin the miso out into a smooth thin paste. [Doing this step will ensure that no clumps of miso will remain unmixed within the soup.]
- Pour the miso into the soup and mix well.
- Taste the seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary.
- Sprinkle the soup with chopped chives and shredded vegan cheese.
Notes
- Nutritional information is provided for guidance only and is not a strict calculation as ingredients vary.
- Nutritional data includes the shredded vegan cheese topping and fresh chives.
- This recipe results in about 2 litres/2 quarts of thick chunky soup. It can give 6 good sized portions, but for hungrier appetites possibly 4-5 servings and for smaller appetites potentially 8 servings.
- Store leftovers within the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freeze for up to 3-4 months.
- Reheat by placing in a non-stick pot and gently bring to the boil, simmer for a few minutes until piping hot.
- White miso paste can be replaced with one tablespoon of tahini paste, 1-2 tablespoons soya sauce or ½- 1 teaspoon of mustard powder [use more if liked to taste].
- Replace the nutritional yeast flakes with extra vegan shredded cheese, or a few tablespoons of vegan soft cream cheese. Also a ½- 1 teaspoon of mustard powder will add extra savouriness if yeast flakes are omitted.
- For extra indulgence and creaminess add a few tablespoons of vegan soft cream cheese.
- For a change replace the broccoli with cauliflower or use both.
Nutrition
Prepared this veggie broccoli soup?
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Take care
Jacq x
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