Copycat Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup

February is ending. The anniversary passed, the nightmares came and went, the champorado was made at 3 AM, and the month is releasing its grip the way winter releases Alaska — slowly, reluctantly, with backward glances. Eight hours of daylight now. The light is returning. The light always returns. This is the sentence I've been writing for three Februaries, and the repetition is not redundancy, it's mantra. The light returns. Say it enough and you believe it. Believe it enough and you survive.

Jason and I have settled into our cohabitation rhythm. He cooks on Tuesdays (sinigang, his specialty, improving weekly). I cook every other day (the full Filipino repertoire, rotating). We clean together. We eat at the table, usually, though the standing-at-the-counter habit persists for late nights and quick meals and the occasional shared lumpia that is too urgent for plate or table. The rhythm is domestic and reliable and I love it with the surprised love of a woman who didn't think she was built for this kind of routine and is discovering that routine, like adobo, is better when you stop fighting it and let it simmer.

Mark called about Carmen. They're dating regularly now — five months in. He said the word "girlfriend" for the first time, which for Mark is the emotional equivalent of a full-page declaration in the New York Times. Lourdes has been informed (Angela told her, because Angela is the family's information system and keeping Lourdes in the dark is neither possible nor wise). Lourdes's response was a full interrogation via FaceTime: Carmen's family name, her province of origin in the Philippines, her parents' occupations, and whether she goes to Mass. Carmen passed. Not easily — Lourdes's standards are high — but she passed.

I made sopas — Filipino macaroni soup, the creamy one with chicken and vegetables and evaporated milk, the soup of comfort and winter and the particular warmth that a February kitchen provides when the world outside is frozen and the world inside is milk and noodles and the sound of a pot simmering on low heat. The soup was warm. February was hard. February is always hard. But the soup was warm, and Jason was here, and Mark has a girlfriend named Carmen, and Lourdes has already begun planning the wedding that nobody has proposed for, and the light is returning, one minute at a time, and the returning is enough.

Sopas is the soup I made for February — and it carried me through — but this broccoli cheese soup is the one I make when I want that same thick, creamy warmth without the trip to the Filipino grocery for evaporated milk I somehow always forget to stock. It has the same quality: the low simmer, the kitchen filling with something that smells like someone is taking care of you, the bowl that lands on the table and says you made it. Jason asked for seconds both times I’ve made it since, which is its own kind of review.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 50 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
3 cups fresh broccoli florets, chopped into small pieces
1 large carrot, peeled and grated or cut into matchsticks
2 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, freshly shredded
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Crusty bread or sourdough bowl, for serving (optional)

Instructions

Sauté the aromatics. In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute more until fragrant.
Build the roux. Sprinkle the flour over the onion and garlic mixture. Stir constantly for 1 to 2 minutes until the flour smells slightly nutty and coats everything evenly. This step is what gives the soup its thick, velvety body.
Add the liquids. Slowly pour in the chicken broth, whisking as you go to prevent lumps. Add the milk and heavy cream, continuing to whisk until smooth. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
Add the vegetables. Stir in the broccoli florets and grated carrot. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli is very tender and the soup has thickened.
Blend partially (optional). For a texture closer to Panera’s, use an immersion blender to blend about one-third of the soup directly in the pot, leaving plenty of broccoli pieces intact. Alternatively, leave it fully chunky — both versions are good.
Melt in the cheese. Reduce heat to low. Add the shredded cheddar cheese one handful at a time, stirring until each addition is fully melted before adding the next. Stir in the Dijon mustard and smoked paprika.
Season and serve. Taste and adjust with salt and black pepper. Ladle into bowls and serve immediately, with crusty bread or inside a sourdough bread bowl if you want the full experience.

Nutrition (per serving)

Copycat Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup — The Warmth That Carries You Through