Broccoli Cheddar Soup (Panera Bread Copycat Recipe) (2024)

FAQs

What are the ingredients in Panera broccoli cheddar soup? ›

Milk, Chicken Stock (Chicken Base [Chicken Meat Including Chicken Juices, Salt, Chicken Fat, Yeast Extract, Sugar, Natural Flavor, Potato Flour, Carrot Powder, Turmeric]), Water, Broccoli, Pasteurized Process Cheddar Cheese (Cheddar Cheese [Pasteurized Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes], Whey, Whey Protein ...

Flour: This broccoli Cheddar soup starts with a roux made with all-purpose flour and butter. Milk: A cup of milk is whisked into the roux, creating a rich and velvety soup. Stock: Use store-bought or homemade chicken stock. Vegetables: You'll need an onion, carrots, celery, and (of course) broccoli.

Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe Tips

Pre-shredded cheese is often coated in anti-caking agents that can prevent the cheese from melting into a lusciously creamy soup. To ensure that your broccoli cheddar soup has the best smooth and creamy texture, buy a block of cheese and grate it yourself.

If heated too high, you risk clumping and if too low, not melting properly. With soup, you might be able to fix it with an immersion blender, or you might not. At a temperature of 150 or so, the protein bonds in the cheese break down and as a result, too much fo the moisture escapes too quickly.

The Unhealthiest Panera Soup: Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Besides its 11 grams of saturated fat, this soup is suffused with sodium. In a 1-cup serving, expect 46% of the daily recommended limit of 2,300 milligrams. "Diets high in sodium can lead to high blood pressure," says Michelle Rauch, MS, RDN.

That Soup Isn't Made In-House

It may taste homemade, but that Panera soup wasn't actually prepared by the workers at your local shop. "The soups are made at a factory/plant/etc., flash-frozen, shipped to us, and we thaw it out in what's called a thermalizer, essentially a soup-thawer," says one former employee.

Is Broccoli Cheddar Soup Healthy? Broccoli Cheddar Soup is not only delicious but nutritious as well. Broccoli is loaded with vitamin C and K, potassium, and fiber, offering numerous health benefits like improved digestion, reduced inflammation, and boosted immunity.

The broccoli-cheddar soup served at Panera is not vegetarian. It is listed as such in the menu that is displayed in every bakery-café. Basically, the soup has a beef base to give it flavor and add substance to the soup itself.

Mild cheddar, Colby, Monterey jack, mozzarella, Swiss and queso blanco can all work well. “The best cheeses to melt into soups are cheeses that are higher in moisture and have a lower melting point,” says Bauer. In addition to cheddar and Monterey jack, he recommends Fontina and Gruyère.

Avoid using pre-packaged shredded cheese as it often contains additives that can prevent proper melting. Add the cheese at the right time: Timing is crucial when it comes to melting cheese in soup. Wait until the soup is almost done cooking before adding the cheese.

How do you keep broccoli cheddar soup from breaking? ›

The common solution is to use a flour-based roux. Flour can thicken up the water phase of the soup, which in turn makes it difficult for fat globules to coalesce. Just like in a creamy Mornay sauce, the cheese can't separate.

Use a thickener – Arrowroot powder or cornstarch are the best options if you want to go this route. Tossing the shredded cheese in one of these before adding to the soup will help it melt better and thicken better.

Broccoli also can be the culprit behind a slew of stomach-related symptoms. Not only does the veggie — or more specifically, the intestinal bacteria that breaks the fibrous content down — cause gas, but that gas can actually be painful, too. Because the gas expands the intestines, its lining and walls become stretched.

To prevent cheese from curdling, it's important to add it to the soup slowly and at a lower temperature. Gradually incorporate small amounts of cheese into the hot soup while stirring continuously. Also, avoid boiling the soup after adding the cheese.

Why is Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup not vegetarian? Panera makes their traditional version with chicken stock, making the soup neither vegetarian or vegan.

Contains: milk and wheat.

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