Creamy Broccoli Soup (non-dairy) – easy, fast, nourishing and delicious soup for a week!

I LOVE THIS SOUP!! It is so yummy and creamy and filling. Feel free to experiment with other vegetables instead of the broccoli like cauliflower, spinach, kale, asparagus, etc. Let me know how yours turns out.

Ingredients

For the soup

• 1 tablespoon oil – avocado, ghee or coconut
• 1 small yellow onion diced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2-3 garlic cloves minced
• 5-6 cups broccoli, chopped, stalks included
• 3/4 cup peeled or well-scrubbed chopped carrots
• 5 cups broth (chicken or vegetable*) or enough to cover
• fresh lemon
• salt and pepper to taste

For the “cream”

• 1 cup raw cashews soaked in filtered water overnight
• 3 tablespoons mellow white miso (optional)
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
• 1 1/2 cups broth

Heat a large stockpot, add the oil and then the onion. Add 1/2 tsp. salt Let the onions cook for about 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Then add the carrots and broccoli. Sautee for 1-2 minutes then add the broth (enough to cover – you may need a bit more than 5 cups). Bring to a boil the let simmer covered until carrots are tender.

Meanwhile, strain the cashews and place in a food processor or blender with 1 1/2 cups broth, the nutritional yeast and miso and blend until smooth.

When carrots are tender, blend with an immersion blender or blend in shifts in the food processor or blender until pureed. Mix in the cream and stir. Allow to thicken on low heat uncovered for about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and add fresh lemon before serving. May be eaten right away or stored in fridge or freezer (as long as none of the ingredients used was pre-frozen) and heated as needed. Note soup does thicken in the fridge. You may need to add some water or broth when you re-heat it.

Enjoy!!

*packaged broth is ok but read the ingredients CAREFULLY. Many contain sugar, cane sugar, other sweeteners, MSG or MSG-like products (look for “yeast” or “yeast extract” for example). I have found some Trader Joe’s brands and some Whole Foods brands that do not contain these ingredients. READ the labels even at natural foods stores.

Enjoy and let me know what you think!