I’ve made this soup twice in the past week. That should tell you something! This recipe comes from one of my favorite websites, 101 Cookbooks.  There isn’t a recipe on Heidi’s site that I haven’t drooled over. I should note that this soup is not your typical broccoli cheddar soup. It doesn’t contain mushy overcooked broccoli or bright orange cheddar cheese.  The two main flavor boosters are grainy mustard and aged cheddar.  They both add such a wonderful tang & depth to the soup. I bet it would pair really well with a cold hoppy beer.

We also need to talk about the star of the soup. Mustard Croutons! The whole thing is genius. I could probably plow through the whole batch in one sitting, sans the soup… Unfortunately, I know better after this past weekend. My friend Whitney has made this soup several times and I totally see why she’s been smitten. It’s REAL good. She says that replacing the cheddar with feta is fantastic! Next time, I’m gonna try that. I also forgot to top my soup with some smoked paprika. There’s always leftovers….

And we’re off!

Crouton time!

Put the mustard in a bowl with melted butter & olive oil. Add in your bread. MIX.

Put the bread on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for about 10-15 mins.

Meanwhile get started on your chopping!

Saute the onions & shallots in olive oil in your soup pot.

Add in the potatoes cook for 4 mins with the lid on. Then add in your garlic.

Pour in your stock and bring to a boil until the potatoes are tender.

While that’s happening, grate your cheese.

And chop up your broccoli into small florets.

Drop the broccoli florets into the soup and cook for 2-4 minutes until just tender.

Quickly put your immersion blender into the soup and puree it!

Add in half of the cheddar and half of the mustard mix. Now add the other halves.

Serve it up in a bowl and add your croutons and some cheese on top.

You’ll see why this soup is worthy of being made two times in ONE week.

Brocolli Cheddar Soup

(recipe slightly adapted from 101 Cookbooks)

For the Croutons:

• 6 oz. of whole wheat bread torn into pieces (should be about 3 cups worth)
• 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
• sea salt

For the Soup:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 shallot, chopped
• pinch of salt
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large potato, peeled & chopped into small cubes (I used two Yukon Golds)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 32 oz. chicken broth or vegetable broth
• 1 large head of broccoli, cut into small florets
• 3/4 cup freshly grated aged Cheddar
• 2 teaspoons whole grain mustard

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix the melted butter with the olive oil and mustard. Stir evenly and then add your torn bread pieces. Mix until all of the bread pieces are coated. Place on a baking sheet, sprinkle with sea salt and bake until croutons are nicely browned. Takes 10-15 minutes. Make sure to stir the croutons a few times during the baking time.

In a large soup pot, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and saute the onions & shallots with a pinch of salt until they become slightly translucent. Add the potato chunks and continue cooking for about 4 minutes-put the lid on the pot at this point. Add the garlic & broth to the pot and bring to a boil. After about 5 minutes or so, the potatoes should be tender. Add the broccoli florets to the soup and cook for about 4-5 minutes for the florets to be tender.

Remove the soup from the heat and start pureeing with an immersion blender. Add half of your shredded cheddar cheese and mustard. Continue blending and then add the other half.  Serve soup in bowls topped with cheddar and loaded with the mustard croutons. DELISH.

Shutterbean Notes:

-I used Kerrygold Aged Cheddar for this recipe

-On the croutons I used Gulden’s mustard and I added Dijon to the soup at the end because I ran out of Gulden’s. Sadly, I didn’t have any whole grain mustard in our pantry!

-I didn’t have whole wheat bread, just a small loaf of french bread for this batch. The whole wheat is better!

-The original recipe recommends a sprinkling of smoked paprika on top! Sounds good to me….