When made with fresh broccoli, this soup has a lovely green color. My recipe calls for half&half cream, which makes it quite rich. A lower calorie/lower fat version can be made by using milk instead. For a quick version, use one package (regular sized bag) frozen broccoli florets and reduce the amount of water to one cup.
1) Prep the following items and place in a large pot:
*3 crowns fresh broccoli - cut florets into bite-size pieces; for stems, peel off outer fibrous skin and dice the stem into small pieces.
*1/2 yellow onion, chopped (vary amount per taste preference)
*1 clove garlic, minced or crushed
*2 cups water
*2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules (or 2 cubes)
*optional seasonings (be creative!): fresh or dried thyme or lemon thyme, marjoram, bay leaves, Italian seasoning blend, rosemary, etc. Save the salt and pepper until the end of cooking.
2) Cook the broccoli mixture at a boil, mixing frequently. Keep extra water to the side and add one cup at a time if needed when water boils off -- before the pot goes dry.
3) As soon as broccoli has a tender, mashable texture, mash it down with a potato masher. Be sure to remove any bay leaves before mashing. I suppose some people might want to puree the soup in a blender, but I like the texture of hand-mashing it.
4) When broccoli is thoroughly mashed, add
*2 cups half&half cream
*2 tablespoons butter
5) Make a mixture of some cream, a little bit of flour and a little bit of cornstarch to use to thicken the soup (or just use cornstarch and cream).
6) Now add salt and pepper to taste. Eat as is, or...
7) ...for BROCCOLI-CHEESE soup, add 1 or more cups of grated cheddar cheese at this point. Use desired amount to taste.
Serve with crackers or bread.
