This healthy Panera copycat broccoli cheddar soup is both vegan and gluten-free! The soup is very easy to make using just a few pantry ingredients. Make sure to check this collection of what goes with broccoli cheddar soup!
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Why You Will Love This Recipe
- This broccoli cheddar soup is vegan and gluten-free, allowing you to enjoy Panera’s famous recipe even if you are on a vegan or gluten-free diet!
- The recipe provides tips for how to get rid of the bitterness in broccoli soups.
- Very quick and easy recipe. Since there is no meat in the pot, the soup is done within minutes!
Related recipe: Vegan Pumpkin Coconut Soup
Equipment You Might Need
- Dutch oven (or a large pot). Cast iron is great at retaining heat which prevents food from burning. I love using a Dutch oven for soups, stews, jams, and bread among other things! You won't regret getting one.
- Immersion blender (or a countertop blender). I personally prefer the immersion blender as it can also be used for plenty of other great recipes like 1-minute homemade mayonnaise, smoothies, and other cream soups.
Ingredients
Vegetable stock – I used homemade stock but you can also buy it premade! To make your own vegetable stock, throw some veggies into a pot (you can include onion, carrot, and garlic peel along with herbs and spices) and boil for 1 hour. Discard the vegetables and the stock is ready. Freeze for up to 3 months!
Plant-based milk – you can use coconut, almond, or rice milk for this recipe.
Vegan cheddar – if you don’t have vegan cheddar, you can use 2 tablespoon of nutritional yeast instead. Nutritional yeast provides a cheesy flavor to the soup along with its nutritional value. If you don’t have either, you can still make the soup, it will not taste cheesy, though!
Potatoes – use russet potatoes.
How to Make Vegan Cheddar Broccoli Soup
Step 1 – Prepare the vegetables
If using fresh broccoli, cut the florets off of the stem and rinse. We won't need the stem for the soup but don't throw it away! Sautee chopped broccoli stem in some oil with onion and garlic, it tastes great!
If you are using frozen broccoli, saute it in a little bit of olive oil over medium heat until thawed completely.
Chop the carrot, celery, onion, and potatoes into bite-size bits and mince the garlic.
Step 2 – Make the soup
Preheat the dutch oven over medium heat and add ¼ cup of olive oil. First, saute onions for 2-3 minutes, then add carrots and celery and continue frying for another 5 minutes. Add garlic and let the veggies fry for another minute.
TIP: to get rid of the bitterness in broccoli, blanch and rinse the florets before adding them to the pot. I tried making this soup with fresh, frozen, and blanched broccoli and only blanched florets did not bring a bitter taste to the soup. To blanch broccoli, add it to a pot with boiling water for 1 minute, take them out, rinse and add to the soup.
Add the vegetable stock, potatoes, and broccoli florets and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5-7 minutes until the veggies become soft enough to pierce with a fork easily. Add salt and pepper to taste, then blend the soup with an immersion blender or in a countertop blender. If you are using the second option, be sure to cover the top of the blender completely to avoid the soup splashing all over your kitchen walls! You might also have to blend the soup in batches.
TIP: if you would like to add some bite to the soup, use a strainer to take out some of the vegetables from the pot before blending, then add them to the pot afterward. I find that this way the soup is more enjoyable to eat!
Step 3 – Add milk and cheese
Once the soup is blended add the plant-based milk, and shredded vegan cheddar (or 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast) and stir to combine. Taste the soup and adjust the salt & pepper. Serve with croutons (gluten-free if you are gluten intolerant) or with fresh bread on the side. Sprinkle with some cheese and greens for a pretty bowl! Enjoy!
Serving and Topping Suggestions
- This soup is great with some gluten-free vegan artisan bread! Or you can also go the extra mile and serve it with vegan grilled cheese.
- Serve burrata Caprese salad on the side for extra flavor!
- Top this soup with fresh herbs like dill, basil, mint, parsley, or others you like. You can also save some of the veggies before blending and add them to the bowl for more texture!
- Another option is to make croutons with your favorite bread and add them to the bowl.
Substitutions and Variations
- You can use cauliflower instead of broccoli 1:1 for cauliflower cheddar soup!
- Use different types of vegan cheeses for more flavor. A lot of vegan cheeses are made with coconut oil though, so be careful not to overload on coconut flavor!
- Add some cayenne pepper for a spicy version.
- You can skip the milk if you don't have it! The soup will be less creamy but still delicious!
Expert Tips
- Sometimes broccoli soup tastes bitter depending on the type of broccoli you use. To prevent bitterness, blanch broccoli first. To blanch broccoli, boil some water in a medium pot and place broccoli florets into the boiling water for 30-60 seconds or until they become bright green. Take the florets out and rinse. Now they are ready for the soup!
- If you don’t have vegan cheddar you can use 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast. If you don’t have either, you can still make the soup but it won’t taste cheesy.
- To adjust the thickness of the soup, add vegetable stock gradually. First, add 3 cups of stock, and if after blending the soup is too thick, then add 1 more cup and see whether you need more!
- To make croutons preheat a frying pan with some olive oil, add a few larger pieces of garlic and saute until golden brown. Remove garlic and add bread cut into cubes. Fry the bread on both sides until golden brown and crispy! For a gluten-free bread bowl make a vegan gluten-free boule, cut the top, and empty the inside, then, fill it with the soup! A fancier option is to make a sourdough boule!
- Here is my collection of what goes well with broccoli cheddar soup.
- Do you want to also make a bread bowl to maximize the Panera feeling? You can even make a gluten-free bread bowl! Here is the recipe for a GF bread bowl, and here is one for a regular bread bowl.
Storage & Reheating Tips
- You can store this soup in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. To reheat use a small saucepan and heat the soup on the stove or pop a bowl of it into the microwave and heat until ready!
- You can also freeze this soup. To do so, place the soup into the freezer bags or an airtight container and freeze for 3-4 months. To reheat, you can either let the soup thaw at room temperature or in the fridge or you can reheat on the stove if you can separate the soup from the freezer bag easily. Finally, you can place the soup into the microwave and defrost it in this way but if you are using a bag, place a bowl under it to catch leaks if the bag were to break.
FAQ
Some broccoli types will taste more bitter than others, plus older broccoli might be bitter even if the type is not normally bitter. To prevent bitterness you can freeze broccoli florets beforehand or blanch them before using. To blanch broccoli, boil some water in a medium pot and place the florets into the boiling water for 30-60 sends. Rinse and use in soup!
You can eat it raw or use it in one of these delicious recipes!
If your soup is too runny you can thicken it with cornstarch. Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to a little bowl with ½ cup of hot liquid (you can scoop some from the soup). Mix the cornstarch into the liquid and then pour the slurry into the soup. Keep the soup on the fire for a few minutes until the soup starts thickening.
Another option is to add cashews. Use ½ cup of raw cashews and blend them in a food processor until they turn into a paste. Add the paste to the soup! Use more if needed.
To make this soup in an instant pot, saute the veggies on saute mode with some oil until they soften. Add the rest of the ingredients other than the milk and vegan cheese (if using) and cook on high pressure for 3-4 minutes. Then, turn the valve to venting to let the pressure out. Stir the milk and vegan cheese if using until fully incorporated. Enjoy!
Here are more dairy and soy free recipes!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Broccoli Cheddar Soup Like Panera
Equipment
- 1 dutch oven (strongly recommend, you can use it for plenty of other recipes!)
- 1 immersion blender (or a countertop blender)
- 1 spatula
- 1 Ladle
Ingredients
- 1 broccoli head not using the stem
- 1 medium onion
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 large celery stick
- 2 small potatoes
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves
- 5 cups vegetable stock for a thicker soup use 3 cups and add more if needed
- 140 grams (1 cup) vegan cheddar can substitute for 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- ⅔ cup plant-based milk coconut, rice, or almond milk
Instructions
- If using fresh broccoli, cut the florets off of the stem and rinse. We won’t be using the stem for this recipe but don’t throw it away! The stem is edible and can be used in other recipes.If you are using frozen broccoli, saute it in a little bit of olive oil over medium heat until thawed completely.Chop the carrot, celery, onion, and potatoes into bite-size bits and mince the garlic.
- Preheat the dutch oven over medium heat and add ¼ cup of olive oil. First, saute onions for 2-3 minutes, then add carrots and celery and continue frying for another 5 minutes. Add garlic and let the veggies fry for another minute.Add the vegetable stock, potatoes, and broccoli florets and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5-7 minutes until the veggies become soft enough to pierce with a fork easily. Add salt and pepper to taste, then blend the soup with an immersion blender or in a countertop blender. If you are using the second option, be sure to cover the top of the blender completely to avoid the soup splashing all over your kitchen walls! You might also have to blend the soup in batches.
- Once the soup is blended add the plant-based milk, and shredded vegan cheddar (or 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast) and stir to combine. Taste the soup and adjust the salt & pepper. Serve with croutons (gluten-free if you are gluten intolerant) or with fresh bread on the side. Sprinkle with some cheese and greens for a pretty bowl! Enjoy!
Fransic verso says
It looks yummy, I'm not vegan but I don't mind trying vegan recipe haha. We have all the ingredients as well.
Natashashome says
You can use regular cheddar and regular milk if you don't need it to be vegan!
Debbie says
This broccoli cheddar soup looks perfect for the upcoming colder months in Ohio. I love Panera's version, and although I'm not vegan, I appreciate trying alternatives. Thank you for sharing!
Natashashome says
Thank you for your feedback! If you are not vegan, you can just use dairy options for the ingredients.
Lindsey says
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it! It’s the perfect time of year!
Natashashome says
Thank you so much for your feedback! Yes, winter is the perfect time for warm soups.