Vegan Creamy Cheesy Broccoli and Carrot Soup
Made with nothing but wholesome ingredients, this Vegan Creamy Cheesy Broccoli and Carrot Soup is so filling and satisfying, so unbelievably thick and silky, you won’t believe that it can actually be so crazy good for you!
Soup that is thick, creamy, velvety, silky smooth doesn’t have to be made with tons of milk, cream, butter and flour. In fact, it doesn’t even require the use of animal product or even gluten, for that matter. Take this delicious, nutritious and soul-warming bowl of comfort for instance. It uses cauliflower and white beans as a base… Yeah, that’s right. Cauliflower and white beans!
As for the cheesiness, it comes from the addition of nutritional yeast, which is a highly nutritious and very popular vegan food product that’s got a cheesy, nutty flavor to it and that also happens to be a good source of complete protein, B vitamins and trace minerals, all stuff that’s super excellent for your health.
And did I even mention the broccoli and carrots that complete this bowl of creamy goodness? Whoa! Nothing but good stuff! And talk about a great way to sneak veggies and legumes into anyone’s diet!
Because seriously, who doesn’t like a bowl of creamy, cheesy goodness? I’m telling you, even the kids will love it!
Start by heating a splash of olive oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat. When hot, add the onion and garlic and cook until slightly softened, golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Then, add the salt, pepper, oregano and onion powder, stir well and continue cooking for about a minute.
Next, throw in the cauliflower florets and 2 cups of the vegetable stock; bring to a simmer…
Cover and cook until the cauliflower is tender and practically falls apart, which should take about 10 minutes.
While the cauliflower is cooking would be a good time to chop your broccoli into tiny little florets and cut the carrots into little cubes.
Keep in mind that this is soup we’re making, so you want your pieces of broccoli to be pretty small, else you might end up eating broccoli in a creamy sauce… As for the carrots, you could very well slice them instead of dicing, if you didn’t have the patience for it and didn’t mind the bigger chunks of carrot in your soup, but then you might want to use 3-4 smaller carrots instead of 2 large ones.
When the cauliflower is really tender, carefully transfer the content of the saucepan to a high-speed blender, then add the canned white beans along with their liquid.
The liquid from canned beans is perfectly safe to consume and will greatly contribute in making the soup thick and creamy… just be sure to use organic beans grown without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides and brands that don’t contain preservatives like calcium chloride. Also, opt for low-sodium or no-salt-added varieties and look for beans in BPA-free cans!
Process on high until super smooth and silky, about 2 minutes.
Note that if you didn’t have a high speed blender, you could use a conventional blender, a stick blender or even a food processor; Only the final product won’t turn out quite as silky…
Now return your saucepan to the heat source and to it, add the carrots and remaining cup of vegetable stock; bring to a simmer, cover and cook for a few minutes, until the carrots are cooked about half-way through.
Now add the pureed cauliflower soup base to the saucepan…
…followed by the broccoli florets and non-dairy milk; bring to a slow simmer, cover and continue cooking until the broccoli is tender but still has a bit of a crunch to it, about 4-5 minutes.
When the veggies are cooked to your liking, kill the heat and stir in the nutritional yeast.
Serve your soup without delay, garnished with a pinch of vegan cheddar cheese, if desired.
Although to be honest, the cheese is only there to make the soup prettier. You don’t really need it… so don’t go running to the store if you don’t have any on hand!
Come to think of it, a handful of grated carrots would work just as well!
Vegan Creamy Cheesy Broccoli and Carrot Soup
Ingredients
- 1-2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1-1/2 tsp salt, or more or less, depending on your stock
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 3 cups vegetable stock, divided
- 1 15 oz can cannellini white beans, with liquid
- 1 medium head broccoli, chopped into very small florets
- 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 cup non-dairy milk of choice
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
Optional garnish
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until slightly softened, golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Add the salt, pepper, oregano and onion powder, stir well and continue cooking for about a minute, then throw in the cauliflower and 2 cups of the vegetable stock; bring to a simmer, cover and cook until the cauliflower is tender and practically falls apart, about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, chop the broccoli into tiny florets and dice the carrots.
- When the cauliflower is tender, carefully transfer the content of the saucepan to a high-speed blender; add the canned white beans along with their liquid and process on high until super smooth and silky, about 2 minutes.
- Return the saucepan to the heat source and to it, add the carrots and remaining cup of vegetable stock; bring to a simmer, cover and cook for a few minutes, until the carrots are cooked about half-way through.
- Add the pureed cauliflower soup base to the saucepan, followed by the broccoli florets and non-dairy milk; bring to a slow simmer, cover and continue cooking until the broccoli is tender but still has a bit of a crunch to it, about 4-5 minutes.
- Kill the heat and stir in nutritional yeast.
- Serve without delay, garnished with a pinch of vegan cheddar cheese, if desired.
Nutrition
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7 Comments on “Vegan Creamy Cheesy Broccoli and Carrot Soup”
wow ..great recipe, I have tried it out, it has come really great, even my children lot it so much… as i am in Singapore few of the ingredients were unavailable here.. but it’s ok..
thanks sonia [url=https://www.theshycasanova.com]:)[/url]
Happy to hear, Catherine! Thanks a bunch for the feedback! 🙂
This would have been 5 star recipe minus the oregano. It really overpowered the soup and there was no going back once it was in.
Sorry to hear the oregano was too much for you, Jacque, but glad you liked the soup still! Hopefully it’ll earn the 5 stars next time you make it.
I’m thinking of adding some potatoes to this as you suggested. Would I add those (diced/cubed) with the broccoli or at another point? Other adjustments I would need to make?
Thanks! Sonia ( https://sultanplay.com )
I would add them at the same time as the carrots, and maybe add a tiny bit more stock to compensate what they will absorb.
Love this super healthy and hearty soup; have made it a few times now. I add 2 tbsp of lemon juice right at the end to balance out some of the creaminess and add a bit of that “sharp” taste that cheese can have. Instead of plant-based milk, after emptying out the blended cauliflower back into the saucepan I chuck a couple of cashews and a cup of water into the blender. Helps to get more of the residue off the blender walls and back into the soup as well. I also happened to have some wilting choy sum in my fridge for the last batch so I shredded up the leaves and chucked them in like you would spinach, just to get even MORE nutrition 😜
I eat pretty big meals and this made 9 servings for me, but I did add a LITTLE bit more water and use a whole large head of cauli and a whole bag of frozen broccoli plus an extra onion (instead of onion powder) so perhaps just larger proportions of ingredients helped here.