So my fridge is still totally packed, mostly with leftovers from our Super Bowl party last weekend. I had a LOT of raw veggies leftover, including carrots, green peppers, and broccoli. I also still have about half of the chicken stock that I made a week or so ago; I never put it in the freezer, so I knew I needed to use it up soon. And then last night I made us some delish homemade mac and cheese, but I made way to much cheese sauce for the amount of pasta I had. So I have leftover cheese sauce, which I was convinced I would never use.
But I had an epiphany! One of my go-to ideas when I want to get rid of leftovers is soup. Veggies and broth are especially ideal for soup. I had a lot of broccoli, so I knew that would be the main part of the soup. And searching for a way to incorporate my cheese sauce.....ah ha!! Broccoli cheese soup!
I started like I start all my soups - sauteing onions and other veggies in some olive oil. I normally use garlic too, but there was a lot in my cheese sauce so I left it out this time. For my soup I used a small onion, a couple carrots, and 3 heads and stems of broccoli. I also added 2 small potatoes, for added texture.
I sauteed the veggies a bit, just to get a bit of flavor into them. Then I added all my broth, and brought it to a boil.
I let the soup simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the veggies were al dente (I checked my broccoli stems for doneness).
In batches, I pureed all the veggies and broth in my blender. (You could also use your fancy schmancy immersion blender if you have one!) I then added it back to my pot, and scooped in my cheese sauce.
At this point, the soup looked puke green and the cheese sauce was clumpy and gross, and I was super nervous this wasn't going to work.
Then the cheese melted and everything got smooth! I seasoned with salt and pepper, and added a little butter to make Paula Deen happy.
Result!! Super yummy, but probably not the best idea to have for dinner alone - Evan and I had some chips/crackers/bread with it to add a little more calories. The soup was nice and smooth, with a few bites of veg every now and then, which added a nice texture. You could even puree it less if you wanted a more chunky soup. I was thinking a few dashes of hot sauce would add a tasty kick too!
I love it when leftover recipes come out like this!
hey, new trip around the kitchen! I remember Opa's famous "mashed potato cauliflower soup"...mmmmmm. You never know where your imagination may take you (and your leftovers!) Have you tried the stir fry yet? That would be a great way to use the rest of your chicken and veggies.
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