Broccoli Cheese Soup in Bread Bowl

Blogging Marathon# 38: Week 1/ Day 3
Theme: Soup or Salad with Sides 
Dish: Broccoli Cheese Soup in Bread Bowl

Today I have a very hearty and creamy broccoli soup served in a bread bowl for Blogging marathon. Soup is another dish I would not order when we eat outside. I consider it more of an appetizer and not real food :-)
I do order broccoli-cheese soup once in a while just because I like it. I have tried it at a few places and except for a couple of restaurants, the soup is usually overpowered by the cheese or the cream. Usually broccoli is the last flavor that you taste.

Recently I got America's Test Kitchen newsletter with the recipe for Broccoli-cheese soup. The experts at ATK say overcooking the broccoli brings out all the flavor out of it and adding baking soda to the cooking water speeds up the cooking process. They also add some spinach which brightens the soup's bright-green color and enhances its vegetable flavor. Finally adding the cheddar and parmesan gave the soup the cheesy flavor without making it heavy.

Ingredients: Serves 3~4

Broccoli - 4cups, cut into florets
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves
Dry mustard powder - 1½tsp
Cayenne/ red chili powder - ½tsp (adjust as per taste)
Bouillon cube - 1 (I use no-salt added, vegan bouillon) or 2cups of vegetable broth
Baking Soda - ¼tsp
Baby Spinach - 1cup (I used ½cup frozen spinach)
Sharp Cheddar cheese - ½cup, grated
Parmesan Cheese - 2tbsp, grated
Salt - to taste

Method: 

• Heat 2tbsp butter in a medium saucepan, add onion, garlic, chopped broccoli, dry mustard powder, cayenne and salt. Cook on medium-high flame, stirring constantly, until it starts to smell fragrant.
• Add 1cup water and baking soda. Bring the mixture to a boil; lower the heat to simmer, cover and cook for 15~20 minutes until broccoli is soft.
• Add 2cups of water and the bouillon cube (or just add 2 cups of vegetable broth). Bring the mixture to a simmer and add the spinach. Cook until the greens wilt, about 1~2 minutes.
• Turn off the heat and stir in the cheeses. Blend the soup either using immersion blender or regular blender until smooth. Return the soup to the pan and bring to a simmer. Serve immediately.

I served the soup in homemade bread bowls. This is a hearty and filling meal.

Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 38.