Broccoli and Cheese Soup

I made this soup for 2 reasons.
Reason #1: I love to make and eat soup when it's cold outside. It's so comforting!
Reason #2: I got some new china for Christmas that I've been dying to use. I'm collecting the Spode Woodland china, and I got these darling little cream soup bowls and plates.

This soup was delicious. I put more cheese in it than the recipe calls for since I like it really cheesy. I think I used about 12-ounces of the Velveeta. It was actually better the second night after the flavors had a chance to marry.


Broccoli and Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (16-ounce) package broccoli florets
2 1/2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
8 ounces light processed cheese, cubed (such as Velveeta Light)

Directions:
Heat a large nonstick saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes or until tender. Add broth and broccoli. Bring broccoli mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; cook 10 minutes.

Combine milk and flour, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Add milk mixture to broccoli mixture. Cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Stir in pepper. Remove from heat; add cheese, stirring until cheese melts.

Use an immersion blender to process soup to the desired thickness. You can also put 1/3 of mixture at a time into a blender or food processor.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups)

Nutritional Info (per serving): 203 calories; 6.3g fat; 1.2mg iron; 24mg cholesterol; 385mg calcium; 21.7g carbohydrate; 897mg sodium; 15.6g protein; 2.9g fiber

Source: Adapted from Cooking Light