You’ll never miss the extra fat in this lightened-up version of a familiar comfort food classic: Skinny Broccoli Cheddar Soup. This soup is thick, cheesy, creamy and downright decadent. No one will ever know you used reduced fat ingredients to prepare it!
The reason I say “no one will ever know” is because I recently took this soup to my parents’ house for them to enjoy. My dad LOVES broccoli cheese soup and I always share with him when I make it.
But every time I’ve shared, it’s been the full-fat version. Well, he didn’t even notice and said it was the best pot of broccoli cheddar soup I’ve made to date. Oh, and he does not care for reduced fat cheese… he does now, I guess!
I reduced the fat from my original recipe by using low fat 1% milk, reduced fat cheese and less butter.
Ingredients Notes
- Broccoli – I normally use fresh florets, but a 24-ounce bag of frozen baby florets will also work.
- Cheese – reduced fat sharp cheddar
- Carrots – I julienne my carrots (cut into thin strips). You can save time by buying a bag of “matchstick carrots” in the produce section of your grocery store.
- Yellow onion – chopped
- Bay leaf
- Flour – all-purpose
- Ground nutmeg
- Salt and black pepper
- Chicken broth – you can easily make this soup vegetarian by using vegetable broth in place of chicken broth.
- Garlic
- Butter – I use unsalted butter so that I can control the salt amount.
- Milk – 1% low fat milk
How to Prepare
Following is a very brief overview – please see the recipe card for full instructions and ingredient amounts.
- Boil broccoli and carrots in a 6-quart Dutch oven or large soup pot for three minutes.
- Drain in a colander and set aside.
- In the same pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and cook for three minutes, then add garlic and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
- Slowly add flour while stirring until a paste (roux) is formed.
- Slowly pour in chicken broth and milk while continuing to stir. Bring to a gentle boil.
- Slowly add cheese and stir constantly until cheese is melted.
- Add broccoli, carrots, salt, pepper, nutmeg and bay leaf. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20 minutes (stirring occasionally). Remove and discard bay leaf before serving.
This creamy and delicious soup is a dinner everyone will agree on – with lower fat. The leftovers (if you’re lucky enough to have any) are just as delicious the next day.
Enjoy!
More Comforting Soups
Skinny Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Ingredients
- 6 cups fresh broccoli florets that have been cut into bite size pieces or 1 (24 ounce) bag frozen baby florets
- 1 cup peeled and julienned carrots or matchstick carrots
- 5 tablespoons butter unsalted
- 1 ½ cups chopped yellow onion
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken broth or stock low sodium
- 2 ½ cups low fat 1% milk
- 8 ounces reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 teaspoon salt more or less, to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper more or less, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Place broccoli florets and carrots in a 6-quart Dutch oven (or large soup pot) and cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil for 3 minutes. Reduce heat as necessary to maintain a moderate boil.
- Drain vegetables in a colander and set aside.
- In the same Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 3 minutes (or until tender), while stirring frequently. Add garlic and cook for an additional 30 seconds, stirring constantly.
- Slowly add flour (about a tablespoon at a time) while constantly stirring. Once all of the flour is added and there is a paste formed, slowly pour in chicken broth, while continuing to stir.
- Pour in milk, while continuing to stir constantly.
- Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, while continuing to constantly stir.
- Once a gentle boil is reached, slowly add cheese (a handful at a time) and stir constantly until cheese is melted.
- Add broccoli, carrots, salt, pepper, nutmeg and bay leaf. Stir to combine.
- Reduce heat to low and cover. Cook on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove and discard bay leaf before serving. Season with additional salt and pepper, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
If provided, nutritional info is a courtesy, is not guaranteed and should only be considered as a guideline.
Originally published September 2014. Updated with new photos, new text and recipe slightly revised January 2022.
Mitch says
I’ve made many broccoli soup recipes and this one, by far, is the best!
I used home canned turkey bone broth and it is absolute perfection!
Amy says
Thank you so much, Mitch – turkey broth (homemade especially!) sounds DELICIOUS in this soup. Thank you for sharing!
Jody says
Absolutely delicious! Nobody could tell the difference that this recipe was lower in fat. The only thing I did differently was microwaved the broccoli and shredded carrots in a covered casserole dish with a little water instead of boiling (This kept the vitamins and flavor). I used whatever liquid developed and added that into the soup. I am sharing the recipe with friends and family. Thanks for the healthier alternative!
Amy says
Thank you so much, Jody – I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it!
Debra Conroy says
Wow tastes so decadent. Will Definitely make again!
Kaylee says
Sooo good! Do you think I would be able to freeze some of the left overs?
Paula says
Awesome recipe! It’s a regular in our household! 🙂
Kristina L Kirkland says
I used 2tbs of butter, low fat sharp cheddar, and subbed low fat almond milk. If you want to cut the butter entirely, steam the onion and carrot. It was delish!
steph says
Delish! Added salt, subbed smoked paprika for the nutmeg, and added fresh chopped garlic.
Megan says
I think it’s great! This is my first homemade broccoli and cheddar soup. I added extra garlic (so I could use the whole clove) and more salt than I thought. I also used beef broth instead of chicken because I had one sitting in my pantry. I’m pleased with the result and will make this again.
Amy says
Thank you, Megan… I’m so glad you enjoyed the soup! 🙂
Bryan says
Thought it was bland. Followed recipe to a T. Nutmeg was overwhelming and felt it was unneeded. “Salt to taste,” is an understatement.
Claudia V. says
Would you happen to know the nutritional value of your soup? I made it and it’s delicious. Thank you so much!
Amy says
Hi Claudia, So glad to hear you enjoyed it! I don’t currently have nutritional info, but there are several online nutritional calculators. Search for “nutritional calculator” and enter the ingredients. I hope to have the nutritional info for this recipe in the near future!
Karen says
You can put it in MyFitnessPal and it will give you the calories and all the micros in the recipe and you can even change the recipe around if it wasn’t healthy enough for you
Debbie says
This was delicious creamy my 1st time making broccoli cheddar made recipe to exact and wouldn’t change love it !
Anjellica says
This was so good. I’m trying to watch my calories but I didn’t want to use preshredded cheese so I used regular extra sharp. It upped my calories to 331 cal per serving but that’s still great. It was very creamy and flavorful especially with a slice of sourdough bread to
Dip. How can I store this?
Amy says
Hi Anjellica, Once cooled, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. So glad you enjoyed it!
Marge says
A great way to get a lot of vitamins/veggies in the diet. We used regular cheese – but – because of the 2-1/2 cups of 1% milk it’s still healthier than using the cream or half n half found in other recipes. Next time I think I’ll double the small quantities of nutmeg and garlic because I enjoy them and couldn’t taste them.
Katja says
Very yummy and easy. My husband wants me to make it again.