Ingredients

The following ingredients have 6 Servings
  • 5 cups broccoli florets
  • 5 slices of bacon
  • 1 medium onion (chopped)
  • 1 shallot (chopped)
  • 2 1/2 cups - 3 1/2 c shredded cheese (I use a Mexican blend)
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1 cup half and half
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 14 oz low sodium chicken broth
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instruction

  • To start, slice some bacon into small pieces.
  • Saute the bacon in a large, deep skillet until nicely browned. Remove with a slotted spoon. Reserve 2 Tbls of bacon drippings and remove the rest.
  • Dice up the onion and shallot. I ended up with about 1 cup total.
  • Add the butter to the bacon drippings and let it melt. Add in the onion and shallot.
  • Cook for several minutes until translucent.
  • Add the flour and combine well. Let this cook for a minute or two to cook out the raw flour taste.
  • Add in the chopped broccoli and remaining ingredients except for the cheese.
  • Let the soup come to a simmer and then cover with a lid.
  • The soup needs to simmer for about 25-30 minutes - just until the broccoli is nice and tender.
  • Go ahead and turn the heat off. Now comes some more delicious flavor - the CHEESE! Depending on how ooey-gooey you like your soup to be you can add in more. I'd suggest starting with 2 cups and then adding in 1/2 cup increments till you reach your desired cheesiness. Mix the cheese in until it's melted into the soup.
  • If you like your soup chunky, you're done! If you like a more creamy, consistent texture, use an immersion blender of a blender to get your desired consistency. I used my blender and did it in two batches.