Broccoli Soup for the Soul

Lately we've been in a broccoli phase - pasta with broccoli (delish!), raw broccoli, steamed broccoli... the days have gotten a bit colder here so I decided to experiment with broccoli soup. Yum!

The only thing is, I'm not much of a fan of cream. Cream of broccoli sounds heavy and not so good for a curl-up-on-the-couch evening (like many winter/spring evenings). So here's my super easy and yummy recipe for a...

Not-too-Creamy Vegetarian Broccoli Soup (vegan option included)

Ingredients:
1 large carrot
1 onion (white for a sweeter flavor or red for a stronger flavor)
1 head of broccoli
1 cube vegetable broth (make sure it doesn't have glutamate in it!)
3/4 cup your favorite unsalted butter (or butter alternative, like Earth Balance)
2 heaping spoonfuls of heavy cream (or 3 spoonfuls of soy or almond milk)
3 heaping spoonfuls of flour
olive oil
salt and pepper
(optional: garlic clove - remove before pureeing)

1. In a pot with one half liter of water, add the cube of vegetable broth and bring to a boil.

2. Place the butter, chopped onion, carrot and broccoli in a pan and sautée for 5-7 minutes. Take off heat and put in three heaping spoonfuls of flour while the mixture is warm, stirring it thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste.

3. Add the cream (or soy/almond milk) to the vegetable broth, then pour the vegetables in. Cover the pot and let sit on low to medium heat for 10-15 minutes to simmer.

4. With a hand mixer, puree the mixture in the pot until it reaches a desired texture.

5. Take off heat, stir thoroughly, add a dash of olive oil and serve to two hungry (or three not-so-hungry) friends.

There are our two bowls of soup in the big white mugs (and homemade croutons in the middle!)

Happy cooking!