Name: Cheesy Broccoli Zucchini Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon salted butter; 1/2 cup diced yellow onion; 4 cups vegetable broth (low sodium); 4 cups chopped zucchini; 2 cups chopped broccoli florets; 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 1 cup heavy cream

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Creamy Broccoli Zucchini Soup is both light and cozy at the same time! Garden fresh zucchini and broccoli are mixed with sharp cheddar cheese to make a bowl of the best creamy, zucchini soup you've ever had!

Broccoli Zucchini Soup in three white bowls with handles, on a striped dish towel, with three spoons and a small bowl of salt and pepper.

During zucchini season, AKA late July through the end of August, I'm adding zucchini to every recipe possible! I'm making zucchini bread, steamed zucchini, sautéed zucchini, air fryer zucchini, zucchini fritters, zucchini lasagna, zucchini egg scrambles, zucchini casserole... and the list goes on!

One of my other favorite ways to cook zucchini is to make it into soup! Soup is a great way to use up extra vegetables in the summertime! My Cheesy Broccoli Zucchini soup is creamy, satisfying and so delicious.

This incredibly easy recipe combines broccoli florets, chopped zucchini, vegetable broth, dried thyme, heavy cream and shredded sharp cheddar cheese. In about 30 minutes you can make a restaurant worthy soup recipe that your whole family will love!

If you love creamy soup recipes, then you also need to try my Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup and my Creamy Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup!

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Why you'll love this recipe
Ingredients
Equipment
How to make
Variations and substitutions
Storage, freezing and reheating
You might also like
What to serve with
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Why you'll love this recipe

Minimal ingredients: You only need 7 main ingredients (not including seasonings).
Low cost: This creamy zucchini soup is very budget friendly, especially if you're making it when zucchini and broccoli are in season.
Easy to double: The recipe is easy to double so that you have enough leftovers for lunches for the entire week... or have lots of zucchini to use up!

Ingredients

Zucchini: Choose small to medium-sized zucchini. Giant zucchini can be tough and have really large seeds in the middle. In general, zucchini just gets hard to work with once it has exploded in size.

Broccoli: Fresh, medium-sized heads of broccoli are best. My instructions are for fresh, uncooked broccoli, not frozen broccoli or leftover steamed broccoli.

Cheddar cheese: Use a high quality, shredded, sharp cheddar cheese. The cheddar cheese is what will give this soup a creamy texture and rich taste.

Heavy cream: The heavy cream will add to to the rich and creamy flavor. It'll also give the soup a silky mouthfeel.

Aromatics & seasonings: Aromatics and seasonings are what add savory flavor to your food. So in this recipe that includes the onion, garlic powder, dried thyme salt and pepper.

Equipment

Immersion blender: An immersion blender is a handheld stick blender. It's long and narrow, making it perfect for reaching deep into a large stock pot. The immersion blender is what will mix all of the delicious flavors in this soup together.

Large pot: I prefer to use my Lodge Dutch oven when I'm making soup. I love how heavy duty it is and how well it transfers heat. If you don't have a Dutch oven then you can use a stock pot or an extra large saucepan.

Additional kitchen tools needed: Cutting board, chopping knife, measuring cups & measuring spoons

How to make

Step 1: Add the chopped onion and the butter to your soup pot. Sauté the onion and butter over low heat, until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the vegetable broth and bring to a boil over medium heat.

Diced onions and vegetable broth in a blue Dutch oven.

Step 2: Once boiling, add the chopped zucchini and the chopped broccoli florets. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until the zucchini and broccoli are soft, about 10 minutes.

Chopped zucchini and broccoli florets added to the Dutch oven.

Step 3: Remove the soup from the heat. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth.

Pro tip: Be very careful when using an immersion blender! It's easy to splatter hot soup onto your skin. Keep the blender fully submerged in the hot liquid while it's running to prevent splatter.

Pureed Broccoli Zucchini Soup in a blue Dutch oven.

Step 4: Add the shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder and dried thyme to the pureed soup. Mix until the cheese has melted.

Shredded cheddar cheese added to the pureed, creamy soup.

Step 5: Add the heavy cream to the broccoli and zucchini mixture and stir to combine. The cheese and heavy cream turn the thin vegetable puree into a filling and thick soup.

Add salt and black pepper to taste. Since the amount of sodium in vegetable broth can vary from brand to brand, I think it's best to not give a specific amount of salt to add to this recipe.

Heavy cream added to the zucchini and broccoli soup.

Step 6: Serve this delicious soup recipe for a light lunch, easy dinner, or as a side dish! It's a great recipe to make ahead of time and keep in the fridge to eat during the week!

A close up image of the zucchini soup, in a small round bowl with handles, on a blue and white striped dish towel.

Variations and substitutions

Vegetable broth: You can substitute the vegetable broth for chicken broth or chicken stock. Four cups of water is also an okay substitute for the four cups vegetable broth in this recipe. You'll most likely need to adjust and add extra seasonings though, as water is obviously lacking flavor.

Heavy cream: Heavy cream can be substituted for whole milk or half and half. the texture and creaminess will change, but they do both work in a pinch!

Toppings: If you want to add some variety to this soup, I would top it with extra crispy bacon pieces, freshly grated parmesan cheese, fresh parsley, a dollop of sour cream or some crunchy homemade croutons. A pinch of red pepper flakes would add some spicy heat!

Storage, freezing and reheating

How to store: Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

How to freeze: Soups with cream, milk, half and half or any cheeses usually do not freeze and reheat well. During the thawing process, the cream will separate and turn grainy, resulting in a pretty gross taste and texture!

The best way to freeze my creamy broccoli zucchini soup is to freeze the soup before adding any dairy products. When you are reheating the frozen soup, you can add your heavy cream and shredded cheddar cheese.

How to reheat: Reheat cold soup on the stovetop, over low heat in a small saucepan or in the microwave in a microwave safe dish. Thaw frozen soup in the refrigerator. Reheat thawed soup on the stovetop in a small sauce pan over low heat. Once the soup has come to a simmer, you can add the heavy cream and shredded cheddar cheese.

What to serve with

Bread: My absolute favorite soup side dish is a crusty, homemade bread! Whether it's a homemade roll, sliced sourdough bread, fresh croissant or a savory muffin... all types of bread and soup are made for each other!

Salad: Salad is the other obvious side dish to serve with homemade soup! I definitely prefer a garden salad, but salads like my Marinated Vegetable Salad and my Mediterranean Cucumber Tomato Salad are also delicious!

Protein: A simple protein is also a great choice to serve with soup. Grilled chicken drumsticks, chicken thighs or chicken cutlets would all be delicious!

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