Broccoli soup-no cream / no cheese recipe
Winters are so synonymous with soups! The more chilli it becomes, the more hot beverages we crave. Coffee in daytime and soups for supper or dinner.
I like the soups which are healthier and don’t leave you bloated or even hungry…something healthy, packed with nutrients, fibres as well as tasty. Thats the reason i detest the ready to go or canned soups. Actually I haven’t really tried any from the shelf. If one can make such quick and healthy ones at home, why to go for canned filled with preservatives? And soups i believe should be of ‘soupy’ consistency, hot & enjoyed slowly slowly rather than the blob from a can which further microwaved takes away most of the nutrients.
Coming to this recipe:
I never tried broccoli soup in any restaurant as I rush for starters than a soup when eating out. I wanted to make broccoli soup as my dautie has suddenly stopped eating broccoli….she is the one who as a baby used to rush to the bowl of steamed and buttered broccoli every single day. And looking at the immense nutrition these pretty florets are packed with, I was not ready to give up on them.
I searched few recipes but most of them required cheese in equal amount which I was reluctant to add. Broccoli doesn’t give a body so instead of a smooth soup, it becomes curdled kind of mess. To add to this, broccoli doesnt have any strong taste or flavour of it. .Hence , I came up with my own thickening agent for the soup which is ‘oats’.
We all loved the soup but it was missing the ‘bright green‘ hue and to correct that I started adding spinach...it adds colour as well as nutrition.
Benefits of broccoli:
Broccoli is high in many nutrients but abundant in vitamin C, vitamin K, iron and potassium and soluble fibre. Apparently it also contains more protein than most other vegetables and it is one of the lowest carbohydrates vegetable thats why very popular in many diets.
Only negative property of broccoli is that it is one of the cruciferous vegetable so high amounts may have harmful effects on the thyroid gland in sensitive people . But good news is though-rough cooking of broccoli even nullify these effects. Do we need any more reason to make this delicious soup?
to watch video click here:
- Preparing the broccoli: clean, separate and wash florets with hot water. Drain and keep aside.
Steps to make:
2. Heat oil, fry garlic and onion, followed by oats powder . Add in broccoli and 3 cups of water or stock.
3.Simmer broccoli for 10 minutes till tender. Blitz with hand blender.Add spinach leaves..blitz again. Finally season with salt ,pepper and lime zest.
4. I reserve 2-3 florets to add as garnish.These can go at last followed by the final boil.
5.Serve the hot soup with garnish of your choice.
: Recipe Card :
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 15 minutes |
| Servings |
people
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- 1 medium broccoli ~ 200 gms
- 1/4 cup oats--powdered
- 1 tbsp oil (I've used Light olive oil)
- 1/2 tsp garlic minced
- 1 small onion--roughly chopped
- 3 cups water (or vegetable stock)
- 1 cup fresh spinach
- 1/8 tsp black pepper powder (freshly crushed)
- 1/8 tsp lime zest
- 1 tsp Salt to taste
Ingredients
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- Wash broccoli with hot water and roughly chop the heads as well as stems .Discard only 2 inch hard end of the stem..(I reserved 2-3 florets of broccoli for garnish)
- Heat oil in pan and fry the hopped garlic & onion. Saute for a minute till raw flavour is gone.
- Add in powdered oats, saute till it turns pinkish. Quickly add broccoli florets and water (or vegetable stock).
- Simmer on medium flame for 10 minutes or till broccoli is tender.
- With help of hand blender, blitz till broccoli is pureed.
- Add in Spinach leaves, give a quick one minute boil.Later blitz it again so it forms an uniform mixture.
- Throw in reserved broccoli florets by separating them into tiny pieces. Give last boil, season with salt pepper and any flavouring of choice like lime zest.
- Ready to serve! I served the broccoli soup with roasted pumpkin & sunflower seeds.You can choose seeds/ croutons/ almond flakes / cheese/ cream/ chilli flakes etc.
- Usually broccoli soup is combined with cheese as broccoli doesn't give body to soup.If you choose to add any cheese, add it and give a boil before serving.
- If you like smooth soup, skip the step of adding tiny florets at the end.
- Broccoli and spinach can be boiled together. But adding spinach at last helps in retaining the colour .
- If you like much thicker and creamy soup, try adding little cheese before last boil. I do the same for my daughter who doesn't like broccoli.
- Oats can be substituted with almond flour/powder.
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Tried broccoli soup. It’s so yummy and creamy,thank you.