Dairy-free Broccoli "Cheese" Soup

This is my spin on Broccoli Cheddar Soup, only I made it dairy free. It can easily be made vegan too if you choose to use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock. Soup is truly one of my favorite meals to make because it can usually be made in one pot and I love having leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day or two. It’s also an easy thing to make a double batch of so you can freeze some for later if you would like to. This recipe would easily feed 3-4 people and is super easy to make, packed full of vegetables, and tastes like comfort food.

Ingredients:

2 heads of broccoli, chopped into florets

3 large carrots, chopped into rounds

1 medium yellow onion, diced

4-5 small yukon gold potatoes, chopped into small cubes

4 garlic cloves, minced

6 cups chicken stock (vegetable stock if you want vegan soup)

1 lemon, juiced

3/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 1/2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste

1 1/2 tsp black pepper, plus more to taste

2 tbsp olive oil, plus more for sautéing the vegetables

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp dijon mustard

Directions:

1. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil on medium heat in large, deep pan. Add in the onion, carrots, broccoli, and a little salt and pepper and sauté for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add in the potatoes and garlic and sauté for a couple more minutes, stirring the whole time.

3. Add the chicken stock (vegetable stock if you want a vegan recipe) and let the mixture simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked and softened.

4. Using a slotted spoon, take the broccoli florets and set aside in a bowl. Blend the rest of the mixture in a blender or in the pan using an immersion blender until smooth and no chunks of vegetables remain.

5. Add the lemon, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and dijon mustard to a blender with 1 cup of water and blend until smooth- this is what will give the soup a cheesy flavor. Add the mixture back into the soup and stir in.

6. Now add the broccoli back in and use an immersion blender to slightly blend the broccoli so there are only small chunks left. If you do not have an immersion blender, you can add some of the soup back into the blender with the broccoli and pulse a few times.

7. Pour soup into a bowl, top with optional gluten-free croutons, olive oil, microgreens, and/or truffle oil.

With love,

Ashley