30-Minute Broccoli and Feta Soup

With the holidays approaching, photography projects are taking most of my time. Since I have no intention of leaving this website unintended, between blogging and photography I am in the kitchen cooking or baking all day long.

Lately, it has mostly been about baking because I want to be able to provide you with healthy recipes for the upcoming holidays. However, baking requires a lot of trial and error and is not as easy as cooking.

Currently, I have three apple-pear pies and two different kinds of cookies in the fridge. Unfortunately, they did not turn out the way I hoped they would. They taste good, but I still have to work on the recipe to make it foolproof. As you can imagine, having a recipe that didn’t work is an upsetting thing for a food blogger. However, it is more upsetting to spend all day in the kitchen testing recipes and washing dishes and not having anything to eat for dinner. If you are a home cook, I am pretty sure you can relate to that.

That is why this broccoli and feta soup is a lifesaver. It is from my friend Emilie’s cookbook. I have been making it for almost a year now and it has always been a favorite in our house. What I love about it is that it is super healthy and it only takes 30 minutes to make.

I also love the fact it does not rely on heavy cream or half and half, which is usually the case with most creamy soups. Instead, it gets its creaminess from a Yukan gold potato. After it is garnished with a little bit feta cheese and fresh Italian parsley, it is simply delicious.

About this 30-Minute Broccoli and Feta Soup Recipe:

In the recipe below, I used homemade vegetable stock because I wanted this dish to be vegetarian. However, if you prefer you can certainly swap it with chicken stock as well, which is what Emily did in her original recipe.

At the very end, I sprinkled it with a little bit of sumac, a Mediterranean spice with a tangy and lemony flavor that is mostly used in Middle Eastern cooking. Growing up, my mother would put sumac on roasted vegetables and I always thought it would bring the best out of them. As usual, it did not disappoint in this soup as well.

One thing I would caution you on is to make sure to keep an eye on it after you put the broccoli in the boiling liquid. All these years of cooking, I overcooked broccoli more times than I would like to admit. Once it is in there, it takes less than 10 minutes to cook. If you leave there for too long, it will turn yellow. It would still taste good, but your soup would be more yellow than green.

I personally prefer my soup rustic-style with chunky pieces of broccoli, but if you prefer it to be smooth and silky you would have to blend it longer.

Either way, I can’t imagine an easier soup that is as healthy and delicious as this one. Why not get some broccoli and feta cheese next time you are at the supermarket and give this 30-Minute Broccoli and Feta Soup recipe a try.

Got some leftover broccoli to use up? If so, be sure to check out my Broccoli Cauliflower Salad recipe.

Other Soup Recipes You Might Like

• Roasted Kabocha Squash Soup with Sesame Seeds
• Sweet Potato Soup
• Turkish Red Lentil Soup
• Creamy Cauliflower and Celery Root Soup with Roasted Shiitakes
• French Lentil Soup

30-Minute Broccoli and Feta Soup

By Aysegul Sanford

Yields: 6 cups

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 30 mins

This vegetarian and gluten-free 30-Minute Broccoli and Feta Soup is a lifesaver when you are short on time. It is easy to make and a great way to incorporate vegetables into your diet. Once it is topped off with fresh Italian parsley and feta cheese you end up with a delicious and veggie packed soup that will warm your heart.

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 medium onion chopped
• ▢ 2 stalks of celery chopped
• ▢ 3 cloves of garlic minced
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
• ▢ 1 large Yukon Gold Potato peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• ▢ 4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock plus more as needed
• ▢ 6 cups broccoli florets rinsed and drained
• ▢ 1/3 cup Italian parsley rinsed and chopped coarsely – plus more as garnish
• ▢ 1/3 cup feta cheese crumbled – plus more as garnish
• ▢ ½ teaspoon sumac optional

Instructions

• Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven (or any large heavy bottom pot would work). Add in the onion and celery. Cook until they are soft, 5-7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 more seconds.
• Add in the salt, pepper, potatoes, and vegetable stock. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer for 10 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
• Stir in the broccoli florets and cook briefly, 8-10 minutes over low heat.*
• Right before you are ready to puree the soup add in the chopped parsley.
• Using a hand blender, puree the soup in the pot. Alternatively, you can puree it in batches in a blender. I prefer my soup rustic-style with chunks of broccoli in it, but if you prefer yours smooth then puree it until it has a silky texture.
• When ready to serve ladle some into bowls, garnish with feta crumbles and parsley leaves. If you prefer, sprinkle it with a little bit of sumac.

Notes

This soup freezes well. If you do so, add the feta right before serving instead of adding it before putting in the freezer.

Nutrition

Calories: 135kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 949mg | Potassium: 458mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1217IU | Vitamin C: 93mg | Calcium: 99mg | Iron: 1mg

Course: Soup

Cuisine: Mediterranean

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This recipe is adapted (with minor changes) from Emilie Raffa’s The Clever Cookbook.