Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives

Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives, the perfect warm you up, and taste so good meal. Great ingredients and so easy to make. Are you craving a creamy soup?

Song of the day: "Love never Felts So Good" by Michael Jackson.

Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives. This soup is luxuriousness in a bowl. The flavors highlight the sweetness of this broccoli combined with the basics of a good broth. Carrots, onions, celery, and a wonderful creamy acidity from some sour cream. The end result, divinely scrumptious especially with a blue cheese and chive garnish!

[This post was first published on Oct. 9th, 2015. It has been updated for content and photos.]

Part one: What can you be!

A lot of people always have this look of "what kind of cauliflower is that!". It looks abstract, almost man molded. Its patterns are so intricate and complex, however,  naturally intriguing!

Well, it is not a cauliflower, it is a variety of broccoli cabbage from the cruciferous family. It is called Romanesco broccoli (broccolo romanesco or broccolo romano) because it originates from the area of Rome Italy, go figure. Nicoletta was so surprised, more so, delighted, to finally find that local Canadian growers were growing this amazingly artistic piece of natural art! For sure a head of this vegetable made its way home with us, after purchasing it from a vendor: Riverbend Gardens at The Old Strathcona Farmers market.  I am excited to make it for Nicoletta!

Part two: What to do, what to do!

Would it be just the classic boil and fry in a pan with garlic, or a Canadian dish of broccoli and cheese.  You may very well know how much us Canadians love anything baked in the oven with cheese. More so, a great tactic for parents to get us kids to eat our veggies. I will have to say no to both.

This Romanesco Broccoli is traditionally prepared in Rome as Pasta e Broccoli, and we have a recipe on the blog. Now, being all grown up and loving flavors of vegetables and furthermore, this day and age with the evolution of cooking and organic growing, a more elaborate recipe is destined for this beautifully exotic broccoli. So being adventurous and for me, loving the art of making soup, finally deciding the fate of this Romanesco broccoli. Hence, today's recipe for Romanesco  Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives. 

Part Three: Blue Cheese or Gorgonzola

The interesting part was adding nice morsels of blue cheese to the soup. I know a lot of people dislike blue cheese or Gorgonzola, the smell, the taste, and the look, as if it was past the due date. However, for Nicoletta, it is one of her favorites, and now one of mine!

We have made some great dishes with it like Polenta Torta with Gorgonzola and Savoy Cabbage, Fettuccine al Cacao with Gorgonzola, Walnuts and Pear, Gnocchi Gorgonzola e Noci, Beetroot Ricotta Gnocchi in a Brown Butter Gorgonzola Sauce, Glamorous Gourmet Grilled Cheese, and Pizza Radicchio, Fontina, and Walnuts.

Consequently, I would have to say that not having been really keen on the cheese before, now I am sold. It's true, definitely an acquired taste, after all!

I am so excited, so let's get started!

Part four: Gathering ingredients!

Into the fridge I go to see what ingredients we have. I am thinking as the soup base, a mirepoix, the classic holy foodie trinity of celery, carrots, and onions. Don't you just love when these three vegetables are sautéing in the pot with olive oil, it creates such an aroma? There they are and onto the cutting board they go after washing and peeling! For the Romanesco Broccoli, treat it similar to what you would do to a normal one and cut it into florets.

We also need a potato, garlic, and some sour cream, plus vegetable broth. Similarly, for garnish, blue cheese, and some finely chopped chives.

Interlude: Memories

I am having feelings of my childhood, with trips to the downtown Edmonton city center market with my mother. Every Saturday morning buying vegetables and looking for those old chickens. My mom would always say old chicken make better soup because they have lots of flavor. The smell of the broth simmering would have me hungry and ready to eat. Anyway, this soup does not have a chicken broth, just simple vegetable broth, and mirepoix, which in my opinion tastes amazing, more so, allows the star ingredient to shine! 

Part 5: Building the base

I always love to sauté the veggies a bit so the flavors can get to know one another. It is similar to an introduction to a play. The actors reveal themselves and develop the plot. That is exactly what is happening at the beginnings of this soup. The ingredients of this soup are working at their best with my help to have the end result of beauty and deliciousness!

Part six: Improvisation!

I would need some cream or half and half cream to create the creaminess I wanted, however, no cream to be had in the fridge. Looks like I will have to improvise.

There is some sour cream in the fridge and a potato, just what I want to achieve that end result of creaminess and consistency. Secondly, some herbs of chives, green onion, and some bay leaf, to kick this soup up just another notch. All these ingredients and of course loving thoughts, beautifully simmered in a heavy cast pot. Lastly, the only thing left is to puree, which will fuse all those flavors together creating a Romanesco broccoli soup that is going to be out of this world good!

The finale: let's talk about flavor and texture

The smooth and creamy texture of the Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives,  plus the addition of sour cream, is luxury to my tongue!  Amazingly, as usual, the holy trinity of carrots, onions, and celery, dance upon my taste buds with the bay leaves, chives, and green onion, offering many high notes of flavor.  Furthermore, there is this elegance with that touch of crumbled blue cheese, and chives, awakening the artist in me! I love it! As a side note, some toasted pita, a great accompaniment to the soup. This dish is the perfect thing for the cooler temperatures of  Fall, furthermore, a great way to use those lovely seasonal veggies that are in your fridge!

There you have it, comfort food, Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives.

THE END!

Enjoy!

Song of the day: "Love Never Felt So Good" by Michael Jackson.

Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives

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Romanesco Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese and Chives. This soup is luxuriousness in a bowl. The flavors highlight the sweetness of this broccoli combined with the basics of a good broth. Carrots, onions, celery, and a wonderful creamy acidity from some sour cream. The end result, divinely scrumptiousness especially with a blue cheese and chive garnish!

• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• A head of Romanesco broccoli
• 1 large carrot chopped
• A stalk of celery chopped
• ¼ white Spanish onion (or yellow onion) chopped
• 1 stalk of green onion chopped
• 2 sprigs of chives chopped
• ½ cup sour cream
• 5 cups of organic vegetable broth
• 3 tablespoons organic extra virgin olive oil
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 potato
• 4 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

Bread:

• 1 large pita bread
• 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• a pinch of oregano

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Instructions

1. Wash and cut the broccoli into pieces.
2. In a nice cast pot drizzle in olive oil bring to medium heat then toss in onion, green onion, celery, and carrots. Cook till onion is translucent.
3. Put in broccoli and potato and cook for another 10 minutes.
4. Toss in chives and bay leaves, salt and pepper.
5. Pour in vegetable broth. Lower heat. Cover and let simmer for another 15 minutes.
6. Add in sour cream and mix well.
7. Cover again and simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
8. Take off heat and with a handheld blender puree till a smooth creamy consistency is achieved.
9. Crumble 1 tablespoon of blue cheese per bowl placing it gently on top of the soup so it does not submerge.
10. Sprinkle a pinch of chopped chives on top.
11. For the pita, drizzle oil into a cast pan. Place pita in and let cook till golden. Flip over and do the same to the other side.
12. Take out of the pan, brush with more olive oil and sprinkle with some oregano. Cut into long slices and serve with the soup.

Enjoy!

Notes

If you can't find the Romanesco broccoli use one that you can find.

Also if you don't have a cast pot then just use a normal one.

• Author: Loreto Nardelli
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Category: Main
• Method: Stove top
• Cuisine: North American

Keywords: Romaneso broccoli, soup, sour cream, chives, blue cheese, mirepoix, bay leaf, potato, lunch idea, Italian, vegetarian,

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Loreto

When I am not cooking, I enjoy playing musical instruments, singing, writing. I have learned over the years to live in gratitude and enjoy the moment.