Broccoli & Gruyère Soup with Homemade Croutons
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This broccoli and Gruyère soup is rich, creamy, and full of cozy flavor—perfect for chilly evenings or an easy weeknight dinner.
There’s nothing like a cozy bowl of soup to take the edge off a chilly evening, and this rich, creamy broccoli and Gruyère soup does just that. Think of it as the French cousin of the classic broccoli cheddar soup. Topped with crisp homemade croutons, it’s hearty enough to be a meal on its own. Best of all, it comes together in under an hour, making it perfect for a comforting weeknight dinner.
“Made this today for a quick NYE lunch. Man, man, man. Just perfect and couldn’t be easier. The croutons really are the perfect topping.”
What you’ll need to make Broccoli & Gruyère Soup
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Cook the aromatics. Melt the butter in a large soup pot. Cook the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery until soft, about 5 minutes.
Step 2: Add the wine, broccoli, and broth. Pour in the white wine and let it cook until it’s almost completely reduced. Add the broccoli, chicken broth, salt, and pepper. Bring everything to a boil, then lower the heat, cover, and let it simmer until the broccoli is tender, about 20 minutes.
Step: 3: Add the cream and purée. Stir in the heavy cream, then use a hand-held immersion blender to purée the soup until it’s completely smooth. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can transfer the soup to a regular blender in batches. Just let it cool a bit first, leave the hole in the lid open, and cover it with a kitchen towel so the steam can escape.)
Step 4: Stir in the cheese. Gradually add the Gruyère, stirring until it melts smoothly into the soup. Stir in the nutmeg, then taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.
Step 5: Toast the croutons. While the soup is cooking, make the croutons. You’ll need bread cubes (preferably day old), melted butter, salt, and pepper. Simply toss everything directly on a lined baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, until the bread cubes are golden.
Step 6: Serve. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with croutons. Enjoy!
More Cozy Soups To Try
Broccoli & Gruyère Soup with Homemade Croutons
Ingredients
For the Soup
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 small yellow onions, roughly chopped (about 1¾ cups)
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed
- 2 carrots, roughly chopped
- 1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 pound broccoli, florets and stems, roughly chopped
- 4 cups (32 oz) low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- 1 cup heavy cream (or half & half, for a lighter version)
- 3 oz grated Gruyère (1 packed heaping cup)
- Pinch nutmeg
For the Croutons
- 2 cups cubed French bread, preferably day old
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
For the Soup
- Melt the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add the white wine and cook until almost completely reduced, a few minutes.
- Add the broccoli, chicken broth, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Add the heavy cream; then, use a hand held immersion blender to purée the soup until completely smooth. (Alternatively, cool the soup slightly, then purée in a blender in batches. Be sure to leave the hole in the lid open and cover with a kitchen towel to allow the steam to escape.) Bring the soup to a simmer, then gradually stir in the cheese, stirring until melted. Add the nutmeg, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary (I usually add about ¼ teaspoon more salt and a few grinds of fresh black pepper). Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with croutons.
For the Croutons
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean-up.
- Directly on the baking sheet, toss the bread cubes with the melted butter. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, tossing once, until the bread cubes are golden brown and crisp.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Comments
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SO GOOD!!! This is a keeper!
DEElicious soup. I was never a broccoli fan until I started making Jenn’s Roasted Broccoli with Chipotle Honey Butter – it was like eating candy it was so delicious and I found myself buying broccoli crowns whenever they went on sale just to make it. But with such a large amount of broccoli in my fridge I had to diversify and found this soup recipe. I puréed the soup in batches in a blender before I added the cream, tasted it and it was pretty darn delicious as it was (for those who want to count calories and make the soup healthier) but the cream upped the taste and again, I could really have stopped there as far as great soup but my husband reminded me that, like adding bacon to a recipe can’t do anything but good things, cheese does good things in any recipe. Well, it was a filling hearty soup and I made sour dough croutons to use up the bread and it was a wonderful meatless meal.
Beautiful recipe! This was easy to make and I usually have all the ingredients on hand. My store didn’t have gruyere cheese so I substituted good extra sharp cheddar that I grated. (No anti-caking agents) As much as I wanted to use all heavy cream I used 1/4 cup cream and the rest 1/2 & 1/2. It was rich enough and just the right thickness. Thanks for saying how much extra salt and pepper you add. I use this as a guide and it’s spot on. I always make your Artisan bread with soup and this bread makes the best croutons! We had the soup and bread and after two bowlfuls my husband was satisfied! Thanks Jenn! Can’t wait for your cookbook to arrive in September!
This is an amazing soup recipe…I make it all the time. I do use my own crouton recipe, however, with either sourdough or rosemary bread, a little dried Italian seasoning and some fresh grated parmigiano-reggiano for the last few minutes in the oven.
Jen, can you use frozen broccoli?
Sure, frozen broccoli should work here. Enjoy!
The soup is delicious ,everyone enjoyed it.
Broccoli cheese soup was delicious! I don’t think it was expensive to make at all. If this soup was ordered at a restaurant it would cost a lot more! We eat home all the time and most of my recipes come from Jenn. I enjoy cooking, this way I basically know what I’m putting in my food. Why do reviews have to be so negative? I follow many bloggers and I can honestly say Jenn has all of them beat! Thanks again for all your great recipes!!
Great flavour. I like the texture of the broccoli whole, so I did not purée. Only cheese I had in the fridge was old cheddar. Family loved it.
This soup was fantastic. It was creamy and flavorful and was a great way to use up an excess of broccoli. I pulled out about a half cup of the broccoli florets after cooking them, then added them back in after the rest was pureed for some texture. The croutons are a great addition too.
Another winner! Great soup! Great Taste!