Cream of Broccoli Soup
(Serves 12-14) ~ Vegan

Proud ‘Sally Soul Smasher’ here. Yup, I just finished serving up salads for dinner tonight. I honestly couldn’t help but to think of the Domino’s commercial while serving it too. Well the salad was delicious – ingredients/picture below:

Spinach
Carrots
Celery
Zucchini (Squash)
Tomatoes
Kalamata Olives
Broccoli
Parsley
Avocado
Portobello Mushrooms (sautéed in oil, salt/pepper and finished with balsamic)

You know… salad doesn’t have to be boring or tasteless. I’ve made so many and fancy ‘Waldorf/Greek’ and basic Chopped salads too. But today I really wanted to blog about my Cream of Broccoli soup! One day last week it was SO chilly out, just freezing. I wanted something warm and creamy and thought what better than a warming soup. Hope you try this one. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 Large Sweet Onion, chopped
1 Large Russet Potato, chopped
3 Tbsp Canola Oil
½ Tsp Celery Seed
1/8 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
2 Quarts Vegetable Broth
1 Quart Water
7 Bunches of Broccoli (florets), chopped
¼ Cup Earth Balance (vegan butter)
3 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
1/3 Cup Nutritional Yeast flakes
½ Cup Soy Milk
½ Tbsp Salt
2 Tsp Ground Pepper

-This is about the size of the broccoli (7 of these).

Directions:
-Heat oil in large pot and add onions. Sauté for about 5 minutes until translucent.
-Add potatoes (I chop them about the same size as the onions), celery seed and red pepper flakes. Continue to heat for another 2 minutes.
-Add one quart of the vegetable broth and heat to cook down the potatoes for about 3 minutes.
-Add remaining broth/water and broccoli then heat to boil. Cover turn off heat and let stand for 35-40 minutes to cook.
-In the meantime, in a separate pan, heat earth balance and flour to create a roux or slurry.

-Bring soup back to a simmer. Add roux, nutritional yeast, milk and salt/pepper.

-Blend soup with an immersion blender and adjust seasoning to taste before serving. Enjoy!

Note: If you’re in a pinch for time just continue cooking over medium-high until potatoes are cooked through. I prefer the step that allows them to steam up and it kind of preserves the beautiful green broccoli color.