She Bangs.... Pots and Pans: Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Soup

Hello everyone and thank you for following me and giving so much positive feedback, I appreciate it. I love Summer but Fall is when I really get into full swing with baking, cooking and canning. The weather is so much cooler and much more bearable. I was trying to think of what to have for supper-dinner and thought why not make a Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Soup, so I did. It's pretty simple to make and it's hearty and sticks to your ribs.

Here's a little tip for you, when you purchase cheese in blocks, put them in a zip lock freezer bag and put in the freezer. When frozen, they are so much easier to grate. Also, spray your box or hand grater with a spritz or two of Olive or Cooking Oil, it makes the cheese slide instead of stick when grating.

What you will need:
Large Size Pot with lid
Frying pan *I use my Cast Iron Skillet*
Spatula
Immersion Blender or Regular Blender
Whisk
Box Grater
Sharp Knife
Pot Holders
Ladle
Colander

Ingredients:
1-Large Yellow Onion peeled and chopped
5-Tablespoons Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3-Tablespoons of Butter. *I like Kerry Gold when I can find it, if you can't any brand will do.*
6-Cups Broccoli Cut up. Washed and drained.
2-Cups of Chicken Stock or Vegetable Stock
1-Cup Whole Milk
1-Cup Half and Half *If you don't have access to this, just add 1/2-Cup whole milk to 1/2-Cup Light Cream*
7-Ounces of Cheddar Cheese grated. *I used Kerry Gold* Plus a little extra for topping optional
1-Teaspoon of Sea Salt or Plain Salt will do
1/2-Teaspoon Crushed Black or Powdered Pepper
2-Garlic Cloves Pealed and minced
1/4-Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg

Instructions:
Set your stove temperature to medium heat. Place your frying pan onto the burner and add the butter let melt, add in the garlic and chopped onions, cook until the onions are translucent almost clear for about 5-6 minutes. Now add in the flour and whisk until well blended. While this is cooking, grate your cheese and set aside.

Add in the Half and Half and milk, one at a time while continuing to whisk. Once all of these ingredients are well blended, slowly add in the stock continuing to whisk. Add in the nutmeg, salt and pepper, continue whisking until all of these ingredients are well blended.

Put on your Pot Holders and slowly transfer this mixture into the large sized pot. Be careful this is extremely hot. You can use your spatula to remove any excess mixture left in the frying pan. Add the broccoli to this mixture and cover with the lid cooking for 20-30 minutes on medium heat until fork tender, not soggy or droopy.

Add in the grated cheddar cheese and mix well. If you are using an Immersion Blender you can use it right inside of the pot. If you are using a regular blender do half batches, meaning put half of the cheese mixture into the blender and puree. I like to keep small broccoli pieces in tact so it's not completely smooth or liquefied giving the soup some texture. Now do the second batch the same way. Transfer back into the original large pot and check to see if it needs more salt or pepper for your taste.