Holy Cow! I Ate Broccoli!

So, as I've mentioned before, I am NOT a vegetable lover. Now that Charlee is eating with us though, I'm trying to at least eat healthier, even though that doesn't always include more greens on MY plate! We ONLY buy whole grain pasta now, and I've actually come to the point that I don't like the flavor of white pasta anymore. **Try Velveeta's Whole Grain macaroni, and you'll never go back, I promise! We buy whole grain bread white bread (I can't do the complete change to wheat, so this is my compromise!) and I've started eating more fruit.

John and Charlee both have some kind of really unpleasant stomach flu thing going on this weekend, so I wanted to make a soup that would hopefully set well on their stomach. John likes chicken noodle, but Charlee won't touch the stuff, so I decided to try some Broccoli Cheese soup...Charlee loves both things...so I figured it was a safe bet!

One of my WTE mommies shared the link with me when SHE made it a few months ago, and you can find it here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Broccoli-Cheese-Soup/Detail.aspx
I followed a few of the suggestions in the reviews at the bottom of the page, so here is how I made it for my little family.

Broccoli-Cheese Soup

3 Tbsp butter

1/2 large onion, finely chopped

16oz package frozen broccoli florets

4 (14.5oz) cans chicken broth

1lb loaf Velveeta cheese, cubed VERY small

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 cups milk

1Tbsp garlic powder

2/3 cup cornstarch
______________________________

*In a large pot, melt butter. Cook onion in butter until tender.

*Remove 1 cup of broth from 1 can and set aside

*Dump in broccoli and pour in 3 cans and remainder of 4th can of the chicken broth. Boil for 5-10 minutes until broccoli is tender.

*Once broccoli was tender, I poured everything (broth, onions and broccoli) into the blender and pureed (it took me two batches so it didn't splatter everywhere) and then poured back into pot.

*Stir in the all cheeses until melted. Pour in milk and garlic powder and stir til combined. Raise heat back up to just below boiling.

*In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and reserved 1 cup broth, and add to the soup. Cook 3-5 minutes, or until soup is thickened.



This made a 4 quart pressure cooker FULL....so it's plenty for a family of 4 or 5 people. There's just the three of us, so I'm going to have a good stock in the freezer for later :)