High Protein Broccoli Cheddar Soup
This rich and creamy broccoli cheddar soup is secretly healthy, with 20 grams of protein per serving! It’s the perfect comfort food recipe, filled with good-for-you ingredients.
I love broccoli cheddar soup and while my regular recipe is a family favorite, I wanted to make a protein-packed version. Sometimes I want something cozy and filling but I also want to add a little more protein to my diet. This soup recipe is the perfect answer!
The trick to this soup shouldn’t surprise you. I turned to cottage cheese to add a rich, creamy texture to this soup without adding saturated fat. I added enough cheddar cheese to give it a cheesy flavor, but the cottage cheese helps add richness while giving it a protein boost.
If you’re looking for more healthy recipes using cottage cheese, try my cottage cheese pasta sauce, cottage cheese macaroni and cheese, and cottage cheese overnight oats!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Butter– A little butter is used to sauté the vegetables. Feel free to substitute olive oil, if you prefer.
- Onion– A yellow or white onion is fine.
- Garlic– I prefer fresh garlic but you can use garlic powder instead.
- Flour– You can use gluten-free flour if needed.
- Smoked paprika– This adds a slightly smoky flavor that I love. Feel free to use regular paprika, if that’s what you have.
- Broth– I like Edward & Son’s “not chicken” style broth which is vegetarian, but has a chicken broth flavor.
- Broccoli– I prefer to use fresh, but you can use frozen if that’s what you have on hand.
- Milk– I used 1% milk to keep this lower in fat, but whole milk or 2% is fine too.
- Cottage cheese– This is an easy way to add protein and creaminess to the soup. I used low-fat cottage cheese.
- Cheddar cheese– I recommend shredding a block of cheddar vs. using pre-shredded because it’ll give you a smoother consistency. I like Cabot’s extra sharp cheddar cheese.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is broccoli cheddar soup healthy? Normally, this creamy classic is loaded with saturated fat and not a lot of vegetables. But in this case, we’re adding in lots of vegetables and bumping up the protein with cottage cheese.
- What’s the best cheese for broccoli cheddar soup? Just a little cheese goes a long way when you’re using extra-sharp cheddar cheese, so it’s a great way to add lots of flavor with minimal cheese. I like the Cabot brand. I recommend buying a block of cheese and shredding it yourself. Pre-shredded cheese doesn’t melt as well.
- Can I make this recipe vegan? Unfortunately, vegan substitutions don’t work very well in this recipe. But if you’re looking for a tasty vegan soup recipe that tastes creamy, try my creamy quinoa soup!
Healthy Sides to Serve with Broccoli Cheddar Soup
For a healthy meal, pair this soup with a salad like this apple walnut kale salad or this vegan chopped salad. It’s a great way to add even more veggies to your meal. I also wrote a whole post on what to serve with broccoli cheddar soup, so check out that post for more ideas.
How to Store Leftovers
This soup will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave, stirring frequently. Do not try to freeze this soup. Dairy-based soups tend to separate when frozen and the texture won’t be the same.
What to Do with Leftover Broccoli
If you have leftover broccoli, try my roasted broccoli salad for a healthy, delicious side dish. Or make broccoli the star of the show with these broccoli sandwiches! I also love this broccoli and orzo skillet for a simple one-pan recipe. Give them a try!
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High Protein Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 8 cups 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This rich and creamy broccoli cheddar soup is secretly healthy, with 20 grams of protein per serving! It’s the perfect comfort food recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoons butter
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (or gluten-free flour)
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 3 cups vegetable broth (I like the not-chicken style)
- 4 cups chopped broccoli
- 2 cups 1% milk
- 4 oz cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup low fat cottage cheese, blended
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat.
- Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the garlic and continue to cook over medium heat for one minute.
- Add the smoked paprika and flour and cook for one minute, stirring until the vegetables are coated with flour.
- Add the broth and broccoli and bring to a simmer.
- Simmer the broccoli for 8-9 minutes until softened.
- Add the milk and cook over low heat until the soup is warm.
- Add the blended cottage cheese and shredded cheese and stir until melted. Be careful not to turn the heat up too high or the milk will curdle.
- Transfer one cup of soup to a blender and blend, allowing steam to escape through the vent. Transfer the blended soup back to the pot. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender to gently blend the soup.
- Add salt to taste, if needed.
Notes
I’ve updated the recipe to suggest using 3 cups of broth instead of 4. You can always add additional broth if you need to thin it out, but it’s better to start with 3, in case you want a thicker soup.
Can i use frozen broccoli?
Yep!
Soup was great! Husband and son loved it. Even though they don’t eat cottage cheese! Not sure I’ll tell them 😉.
Decent soup. I know broccoli cheddar soup doesn’t have a lot of seasoning but I felt it needed something more. I added a little cumin and garam masala. I also wish I had added a little more garlic and cheese.
I made exactly as the recipe described, it was delicious! I did not think it was watery at all. Thick and delicious. I used an immersion blender to mix and it came out perfectly.
This soup looks fantastic! I love a high-protein meal that’s also vegetable-forward 🙂
I personally really liked this soup with the modifications I made after reading some of the comments. For more flavor: used salted butter, doubled the garlic and added 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes. For thickness: 1.25c milk, .75c heavy cream (yes I know the point is for this to be healthier but the thicker liquid really helps. I blended probably 2-3 c of the soup rather than 1. And lastly I put two 2 tbsp flour and 4 tbsp water in a bowl, mixed til combined and added it to the finished soup. My husband said we should put this in our regular dinner rotation!
I made this and it was delicious!! Was it slightly too thin for my liking, yes. Did I add cornstarch and water to thicken it, also yes! I didn’t blend any of the soup because I like the chunky bits of broccoli. But it tasted great!!
Just being completely honest, this soup needs some work. It was so watery. I personally cut the broth in half and it still was very watery…maybe add a little more flour to try to thicken up more. The flavor was ok, I added more broccoli and cheese to make thicker and add more flavor. Quick and easy to make though!
Great flavor! But WAY too thin. I will not put as much broth the next time I make it.
Agree with previous comments, this recipe has too much liquid. I ended up blending the whole thing and it was good. Next time I’ll use a cup or two less of broth so I can still have some chunks of veggies. But flavor is good!