Broco Cauli Chicky Cheese Soup.

I've been craving broccoli cheese soup for awhile. The issue is that if you go out and try to get yourself a cup at a restaurant you will be paying pretty high in calories for it. The average for one cup is about 150-175 calories. So of course I had to fit foodie it up! Here's my version, coming in at only 68 calories per cup and it has chicken! Now this soup has several steps, make sure to read all the way through!

BROCO CAULI CHICKY CHEESE SOUP

1 lb. fresh broccoli crowns

1 small yellow onion, diced

2 large cloves garlic, minced

1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen cauliflower - you can use fresh too, but frozen is generally cheaper and easier!

7 c. water

2 chicken bouillon cubes

2 tsp. Seitenbacher veggie broth seasoning (you can omit this if you like and sub another chicken or veggie bouillon cube)

7 oz. cooked chicken breast, shredded

2 oz. Cabot reduced fat Pepper Jack cheese

1 tbsp. corn starch

Here's what you do. 

Cook chicken breast with a little olive oil cooking spray, salt and pepper in the same pot you will be using to make your soup. Once mostly done, set aside to cool.

Next: Chop your broccoli into small florets. 

In the pot you cooked your chicken in add garlic, onion, seasonings and 2 cups of water. Do not clean or wipe out all that chickeny goodness in the bottom! Bring to a boil and add broccoli and cauliflower. Cook for several minutes until veggies are done but not overcooked and colorless. 

While that is cooking, shred your chicken using two forks.

If you prefer, you can dice instead. 

Next, remove about a cup and a half of the broccoli florets from the pot and set aside next to the chicken. We will re-add these later. The rest of the contents of the pot will go into a food processor or blender. Once blended to desired consistency add back in some of the cooked florets, pepper jack cheese and the chicken and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add in 1/2 c. cold water mixed with corn starch to thicken soup a bit. 

Makes 10 - 1 cup servings - 68 calories each. 

**You don't have to blend it at all if you prefer a chunkier soup with a brothy quality. And you also don't have to pull out some florets before blending if it's too time consuming or you like the smoothness of the soup. I wouldn't recommend blending the chicken, that could be bizarre. I prefer a bit of texture to my soups.