wholeliving

Creamy Broccoli Soup

Whole Living, January/February January/February 2013
  • Yield Makes 4
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Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp coconut or extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 4 cups Cleansing Broth
  • 1 head broccoli, trimmed and chopped (6 cups)
  • 3 cups baby spinach
  • 1 avocado, chopped, plus more for garnish
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Heat oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add broccoli and cook, covered, until bright green and tender, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat, stir in spinach, and let cool slightly.

  2. Transfer soup to blend and puree with avocado. Adjust seasoning. Garnish with avocado and a drizzle of olive oil.

Cook's Note

Refrigerate soup in an airtight container up to 3 days.

Recipe Reviews

  • Mocha
    19 Feb, 2013

    Never thought broccoli could taste this good. The soup was thick and creamy. I could taste the flavours from the cleansing broth and the pepper flakes. I ended making 2ltrs of this soup!

  • Skina3
    18 Feb, 2013

    This was a hard one to eat, and my sister couldn't do it period, I can only imagine that I did something wrong in the prep so I'm going to try it again but from what I could tell the only good things about it were the avocado and the pretty green color the soup ended up being :/

  • Terri Trentham Dorris
    15 Feb, 2013

    I liked this soup better the second day and found it to be very good. I will make this one again. I also add more heat and lemon.

  • Heather Williams
    12 Feb, 2013

    This is SO tasty! The secret is getting enough salt. Without it, it's very flat. I added Red Alaea Hawaiian Salt, plenty of pepper to give it a kick, & a swirl of EVOO. VERY VERY tasty! Have had it for the last three meals because I like it so much :)

  • madmaryg
    9 Feb, 2013

    I thought this was delicious and I did add the lemon. I think the cleansing broth really gives it a lot of flavor.

  • Gardening2
    7 Feb, 2013

    I added lemon and doubled red pepper flakes as others recommended. It was okay, but I really didn't enjoy it and only ate it once more as leftovers. The more avocado on the top I put the better it got. I doubt I'll eat this again. But apparently others really enjoyed it. My motto with this cleanse is, Try everything! You may be surprised by liking something unexpectedly (I already have).

  • Liza_Nelson_45
    31 Jan, 2013

    I love this recipe. So glad you can store it in the fridge for three days. I had it last night for dinner and already looking forward to having it for lunch today!

  • ferg4africa
    30 Jan, 2013

    I also followed the lemon suggestion and was so glad I did. I also used more garlic and followed the recipe the rest of the way. I really liked this soup. Loved the avocado in it.

  • JAF87
    29 Jan, 2013

    I absolutely love this soup! I did make a few tweaks though... I used 5 cloves of garlic and I doubled the red pepper flake. I also used the recommendation of lemon juice and definitely tasted the benefit of it. Next time I might leave out half the broccoli from blending so it has a little more texture...loving every recipe from my first week of the 21 day challenge!!

  • dorothydara3
    29 Jan, 2013

    This was probably the one recipe I thought I'd enjoy this week...but maybe after nearly a week of hunger, the thought of having the soup as leftovers actually made me not hungry anymore. The flavors are okay, but I thought it rather just tasted like watery pureed greens. Perhaps I just really miss cheese...

  • IrishEyesAreSmilin
    28 Jan, 2013

    ...oh, and I used an immersion blender AFTER adding the avocado and it is worth it. So creamy you'd think you added cream!

  • IrishEyesAreSmilin
    28 Jan, 2013

    Love this soup!!! Can't wait to share this recipe. Easy to make, filling, and yummy!

    Thank you, @alpearsall!! Juice from half a lemon (and kosher salt) are exactly what's needed to balance this soup. So good!

    @MissChriddy Their recipe is here http://www.wholeliving.com/216560/cleansing-broth

  • HisSonflower
    27 Jan, 2013

    The lemon juice works. I had added it before even reading the other reviews. Great minds think alike! MAGIC BANANAS!

  • HisSonflower
    27 Jan, 2013

    So this soup is excellent. I don't miss the cheese and cream at all. After the clean eating plan I will make this soup with chicken broth. Either way it's delicious.

  • MountainMontana
    25 Jan, 2013

    My husband LOVED this soup, which is good, b/c I could only stand to eat it once. I thought the taste was excellent, but I just really dislike the texture of broccoli soup. I also added a little lemon juice, per someone else's suggestion - a good tip!

  • DiSerres
    24 Jan, 2013

    I am going to do this with organic vegetable broth but what is the recipe for cleansing broth?

  • baristagirl
    23 Jan, 2013

    YUM! I added lemon at the end as well and topped my soup with toasted walnut oil and pumpkin seeds. I also just pulsed mine in a food processor and loved the little bit of texture it left.

  • foodsnob
    23 Jan, 2013

    I added avocado before pureeing - I prefer no chunks as well, MissC. This is such an easy soup and SO YUMMY! Also I used organic vegetable broth since I didn't have time to make my own.

  • Moon Beam
    23 Jan, 2013

    Yummy. I added some cayenne pepper to spice it up.

  • MuffinBunnyRemy
    23 Jan, 2013

    Really good. Lemon juice and a little corse salt at the end are a must.

  • MissChriddy
    22 Jan, 2013

    I definitely liked it. I wonder how it would turn out if the avocado was added just before the puree? I think I would like the creamier texture rather than the chunks in my soup. Any words of wisdom from someone who might know better? Much appreciated. Thanks for sharing the lemon idea, btw. I agree it was a nice addition.

  • gailsox
    22 Jan, 2013

    Very good - I tasted as I went along - and I agree the lemon is a must.

  • olibeep
    22 Jan, 2013

    I was surprised about how good this recipe tasted.

  • barefootgirl27
    22 Jan, 2013

    I just made this recipe and really liked it. Like the others, I added lemon juice.. it was bland with out it. I also topped it with a swirl of home made cashew cream.. this recipe is a keeper :)

  • sjmolina
    20 Jan, 2013

    This was great - made it with the lemon and am amazed at how I enjoy this soup! (thank you for the tip @alpearsall)

  • latebloomer
    17 Jan, 2013

    Just finished my first bowl of this good food. Thanks for the lemon idea - next time I will add it. Wondering how it is going to reheat?

  • alpearsall
    15 Jan, 2013

    A couple tweaks: I recommend blending everything (emersion blender, if you can) after the addition of the spinach to your desired consistency. This recipe also benefits **a lot** from the addition of the juice of half a lemon once it's been removed from the heat (really, it needs it - just add some lemon).