Cream of Broccoli Soup like Kneaders

Cream of Broccoli cheesy soup like Kneaders …well except I added bacon (meat candy) 😀 

We have a fun little bakery/ sandwich shop in the Salt Lake City area called Kneaders. They make the most delicious artisan breads, soups and rich desserts, not to mention their hand pulled turkey and avocado sandwiches on focaccia bread.

Turkey Avocado Kneaders sandwich on Focaccia  bread 

 I dream about those sandwiches sometimes. And their cupcakes, cheesecakes and cream puffs are divine. Just look at their yummy selections! My daughter spoiled me on my birthday with a 4 pack of cupcakes in 4 flavors. It was such a yummy treat!

Kneaders is one of my favorite lunch spots in the Salt Lake valley. 

Anyway we had lunch there the other day and I had a combination soup and sandwich plate that included a yummy cream of broccoli soup. I think it is my hub’s favorite soup. He loved it so much I went home that night and tried recreating it. I think it is pretty darn close! We both loved it.

Here is my recipe for Broccoli Cheese Soup

2 cups of frozen broccoli florets
1/2 pint cream 
1/2 cube butter (use it to fry up onions with some olive oil)
1/2 medium onion (or more) diced
2 stalks celery finely diced
2 cups milk 
A cup or so of water added (I just add till I like the consistency)
2-3 tablespoons flour
1/2 to 3/4 cup mashed potato flakes to thicken
1/2 cup finely grated cheese of your choice
3 bacon pieces microwaved and crumbled crispy
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1/2 teaspoon Johnny’s Season Salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
pepper to taste

Broccoli Cheese soup on a cold, snowy day is the very BEST treat! 

I start all my soups by dicing the onion up in a fry pan with a little olive oil mixed with some butter. Then when they are caramelized I add the flour and a little milk to make a roux or a flour gravy. Keep adding milk a bit at a time till you have a thin white sauce. Then I add the diced celery, the broccoli florets, and milk.

Just steam your broccoli for 3 minutes in the microwave covered with plastic wrap. 

 After letting that all simmer for 5 to 7 minutes I add some water and potato flakes to get my perfect consistency that I prefer. Then I add seasonings, tasting as I go. I crumbled up 3 pieces of microwaved bacon into the soup when serving.  Cheese is added last. I think I used a mixture of grated jack and cheddar in one of those 1 cup bags you buy at Walmart…so convenient!

I learned how to make easy 30 minute french baguettes bread from the FOOD NANNY! 
The French Baguettes recipe and tutorial are on another WEEKDAY CHEF post. They are so easy you won’t believe it. And they are hot and crusty and yummy and No FAT! well…..except all that butter I slathered on after they were hot from the oven!! 

French Baguettes go great with hot, creamy Cream of Broccoli  soup! 

Anyway, it took all of 20 minutes to make this soup. I did microwave the broccoli in a little bowl with a bit of water and some plastic wrap over it for 3 minutes first so it was semi steamed before I dumped it in the pan.

Here is my finished broccoli cheese soup like Kneaders.  I added a few slices of crispy bacon crumbled up and some croutons…

I served the soup with some homemade garlic croutons (just buttered bread sprinkled with Johnny’s garlic seasoning and cut up then toasted in the oven) and some mozzerella cheese grated over top for fun. It was delicious!

Creamy Broccoli Cheese soup with bacon added…..yummo! 

 Hot, creamy soup is always a winter winner. Try it in a bread bowl. Jamie Cooks it up has a great recipe for breadbowls  HERE that always turn out pretty and yummy.

Here they are hot out of the oven made by my daughter Tiffany for my birthday dinner. She’s a good cook too! 

Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup is perfect for a freezing, snowy day to curl up in a big quilt by the fire and sip while watching all the junk on my DVR! And even better in a bread bowl or with some hot french bread. mmmm…..yeah, I want some now!

Fall Soup Recipes

I was at the Sprouts Market near Fashion Place Mall yesterday with the hubs. We were getting lots of Farmer’s Market produce because it is so fresh and delicious there. They had this most delicious looking soup bar! It made me want to go home and make soup. So I did! (after I got lots of yummy organic veggies and fruits!)
Sprouts-logo-big
But before I did I had to sample some of their BUTTERNUT SQUASH soup. It was delicious. The veggie gourd is low in fat and high in fiber and potassium too. Yum to that, right? It had a hint of nutmeg in it.

Butternut Squash makes a delicious soup! I’ll have to mess around with that one! 


Another soup I love to make is broccoli cheese or cream of broccoli.  It is easy and sosooooo yummy. The recipe is  HERE. 


I got a few yellow crook-neck squash, some zuchini and a really giant sweet onion and a giant yellow pepper!. And their avocados were GIANT! They know how to grow stuff! For sure!  I’ll be making a great salad with those things. But what I really love are their fruits. They had blackberries for $2.50 a basket that were so big and sweet looking I bought 2 baskets! And the Cuties were so cute!

The recipe for this homemade chicken noodle soup with homemade noodles is HERE. It’s another favorite soup of mine, perfect for the cold, rainy weather we’ve had lately, and especially today!

And here is my Clam Chowder Soup.  It’s one of my hub’s favorites.

Here is my recipe for clam chowder. You can delete the clams and add some parmesan cheese and it’s a pretty good Potato Cheese soup too. 

But it got me thinking about how much healthy stuff goes into soup and how we could probably lose more weight if we just replaced a few pasta dishes with veggie soups and stews.  I’m going to make more veggie soups! Especially on a rainy day like we’ve had. Now if I can just stay away from the crusty bread and butter!