Cream of Broccoli Soup

It’s been cold again here in Prague and when its cold it makes me want to make soup, but I have really been enjoying spring time and I didn’t want to go back to the meat based stews and soups of winter… what to do? How do I balance my longing for warm soup with my longing for spring time? Cream of Broccoli Soup, of course. Last night I made Cream of Broccoli Soup for the first time. As usual I just made up the recipe as I went. It turned out really yummy and I thought I’d share how to make it with all of you. I was a little hesitant though because I don’t really use recipes very much and when I create recipes they are never very precise. I add a pinch of that, a dash of this, half a pot of something else, and a few spoonfuls of stuff. My inconsistency with recipes is why I’ve never posted any of our meal creations on my blog. But, today I started thinking that maybe there are other people out there who cook a bit like me and who would appreciate my random recipes. So, I’m going to try posting my Cream of Broccoli soup and see how it goes… maybe there will even be more recipes to come in the near future.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

2 small onions (can add more if you want or just use one if it’s bigger) Broth (I used a homemade beef and vegetable broth, which only had one beef bone in it so it had more of a vegetable flavor then a beef flavor. You could use chicken broth, or plain vegetable broth.) Water 2 heads of broccoli whole coriander whole white pepper whole black pepper whole mustard seed whole cumin 1 and a half packages of cream (I think that our cream here comes in about 200g packages so I used roughly 300g. You could use more for a creamier taste – or less. You could even leave out the cream all together if you want to avoid dairy) A bit of Butter Salt to taste

NOTE: I often use whole spices because they stay fresher that way and are more flavorful.

Cut up the onions and sauté them in butter (or lard, or whatever other fat you choose) in a medium size pot. While the onions are getting tender clean the broccoli and then cut it into chunks. Once the onions are sort of translucent and soft, maybe just a little bit golden in color, add the cut up broccoli. Then add some broth and water (or all broth if you want a richer flavor, or all water if you don’t have or what broth – you can play with the proportions) until you just cover the broccoli. Place the lid on the pot and let it cook for about 20 minutes, or until the broccoli is very soft. Next use a hand-held blender and blend it all up. Then use a mortar and pestle to grind the whole seasonings and add them to the soup along with some salt. Let simmer for a little bit so that the flavors all permeate the soup. Stir in the cream. Just before serving add about a tablespoon of butter to the soup, this will give it a nice shine and adds a little extra flavor. Add salt and more pepper to taste. Serve with warm bread or crackers.

Enjoy!

Rejoicing in the journey - Bethany Stedman

This post is part of the Moms’ 30-Minute Blog Challenge hosted at Steady Mom. Check out the link for other great posts all written in just 30 minutes.