Vegan Broccoli Cheese Soup

Broccoli cheddar soup is one of my favorite cheat meals. Downright terrible for you, this soup is probably the best offering at Panera (sorry, not sorry) and it is always my top choice when I go there. There also used to be a restaurant named Crispers (still around though not as many spots) which had a great version of it as well. Generally speaking though, I refrain from ordering it and pick a veggie option like minestrone. Ultimately I wind up with something like fries anyway, but I work hard on convincing myself I'm making healthy choices. Hey, it's the little things.

One of my early blog posts was a Cheesy Vegetable Chowder (don't click it, the photos are shameful), which was my first attempt at a homemade version. It came out quite good, but even after making it over 6 years ago, I haven't made it again due to the heaviness of the soup. I've made an effort to eat better and better as time has gone on, and pouring more than 2 cups of cheese into the main dish would require some convincing.

So in contemplating a remake of this dish, all thanks to a recent craving, I thought, can we do it without cheese? That's where the interesting part lies. I'd had some butternut squash recently and realized it could be used as a good base for a thick sauce, and then my sister sent me a vegan "cheese" recipe she'd made a while back that competed well in the taste buds with that sweet sweet taste of cheddar. It consisted mostly of a mix of potatoes, carrots, and nutritional yeast. 

There are most certainly vegan cheese, some of which even melt well nowadays. But if given the option of fresh vegetables or a likely processed cheese alternative, I'll take the most natural route.

For my "cheese" sauce, I decided to do a mix of butternut squash, sweet potato, and carrots, boiling the vegetables for about 40 minutes until they were very soft. I drained out most of the water, but as I'd created somewhat of a vegetable broth with the boiling water, I left some of the water in the pot.

I used a masher to blend the veggies, then whipped out my stick blender to get a smoother consistency. Likely the easier path would be using a food processor or blender, but I found this worked well and I was ready to get this soup a-goin.

The next part of the soup makin' process was to throw in some seasonings and further vegetables. First, I added the oil (this can be either butter or cooking oil; I used butter for the creaminess and highly recommend vegan margarine), then added some coconut milk. I added the nutritional yeast (which acts a bit like a grated cheese), lemon juice, some chopped onion, parsley, salt, and pepper. I also mixed in some broccoli florets.

The result was a brightly-colored, vegetable-loaded soup, one that shined a little brighter than the traditional, pale orange cheddar soup I was dreaming of when I came up with this.

Well, that was a surprise.

I'd never try to convince anyone that blended vegetables taste just like melted cheese. There is no comparing with cheese, and we all know it. But can those with a cheese allergy go on? Do vegans get a choice in broccoli cheddar soup?

Those with cheese allergies or vegetable obsessions can rest a little easier knowing that a blend of squash, carrots, and sweet potato (and variants of that) can create a perfectly delightful cheese substitute.

The best part of this is that it's a huge pile of vegetables. Nutritional yeast itself has healthy qualities, and just adds to the flavor. Ultimately, what I'd change next time is the addition of some cayenne (which tends to complement cheese flavors) and some crushed red pepper. The texture, though, and flavor, were fantastic and even the leftovers made a great, filling meal. New ideas? Keep 'em comin.

Vegan Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash
1 sweet potato
1 1/2 cups carrots (about 3 carrots)
1/4 cup olive or avocado oil (or butter if you prefer vegan)
1/4 cup coconut milk (or milk, 2% or whole preferred)
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups broccoli florets (I used frozen)
1/4 cup chopped onion

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried parsley
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Instructions:

Peel and cube butternut squash, sweet potato, and carrots. Boil in about 4-5 cups water (until submerged) for 40 minutes. Drain all but approximately 1 1/2-2 cups water (or drain all water into a bowl and add that back in). Use masher or food processor to blend vegetables until mostly smooth. Add butter, coconut milk, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, broccoli, onion, garlic, salt and pepper and cook on medium for 20-30 minutes, until broccoli is softened.

cheese sauce adapted from from vegan cheese