Cheesy Veggie Chowder

Over the summer I pinned all sorts of soup recipes to try out once the weather got cooler here in LA and so far, I'm coming up roses! I used this recipe as my base and made a few minor adjustments (like more cheese, obviously)

This soup is really simple, really easy, and tastes really close to Panera's Broccoli Cheddar soup, but with a fraction of the bad stuff)

Enjoy!

The Goods:

 

2 Tablespoons butter

1/2 chopped onion

1 cup chopped carrot

1 celery bunch, chopped

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

4 cups chicken broth

2 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped

1.5 tbsp flour

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup milk (or a bit more if it's not thick enough)

2 cups chopped broccoli

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, and some for topping

Directions: 

1. Chop celery, carrots, and onion. Saute over butter and add garlic after 2-3 minutes.

 

2. Add chicken broth and cubed potatoes, bring to a boil. 

  

3. Mix flour with water, stir and then mix to thicken. Simmer for 10 minutes.

 

4. Add milk, broccoli, and cheese. 

5. At this point, I shut off the burners to let the flavors chill for about 2 hours (*this is not necessary). When we were ready to eat dinner, I simmered the soup, added more cheese and milk, a heavy dash of salt and pepper and voila!