Broccoli Cheese Soup (Recipe from My Bizzy Kitchen)

Broccoli Cheese Soup 

I've been a fan of Broccoli Cheese Soup for a really long time. There was a sandwich shop near the campus at Western Oregon State College (it's now called Western Oregon University), where I went to school, and they had delicious Broccoli Cheese Soup in bread bowls.  YUM!  I remember I had a late Psychology class on Thursdays and the bread bowl at the sandwich shop brimming with hot, steamy, creamy soup was my Thursday ritual.  Soup is great in drizzly cold Oregon. 

When I saw this recipe a few weeks ago on a blog called www.mybizzykitchen.com, I knew I had to try it.  The blogger at My Bizzy Kitchen says this soup tastes EXACTLY like the Broccoli Cheese Soup at Panera Bread.  I don't think I've ever had that soup at Panera, but I really liked this soup when I made it today.  The soup does call for 8 ounces of full-fat cheddar cheese (I used extra sharp cheddar cheese), but some of the calories and fat are reduced by the use of fat-free half-and-half.  I had never heard of that product before but it does exist!  I considered using reduced fat evaporated milk in the event I couldn't find the fat-free half-and-half.  I followed the directions for the recipe pretty much as outlined on My Bizzy Kitchen.  I think I did use extra broccoli (two large crowns).  Next time I make this, I think I might pulse the broccoli and carrots together in a food process to chop it up a bit more easily before adding it in the soup.  The blogger at My Bizzy Kitchen recommend putting the soup in the food processor to blend it before adding the cheese so there are no big chunks of broccoli, but I liked the chunks.  The link to recipe is HERE.

I've not been doing a lot of recipe creating lately as my need for a creative outlet is being met elsewhere... Click HERE if you'd like to see what I've been up to.  Here's a little sample...