Ingredients

Scale

1/2 Tablespoon grass-fed butter or extra virgin olive oil
1 small sweet onion, peeled & chopped coarsely
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 – 4 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped
2 green onions (including green tops), chopped
2 bay leaves
2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth (I some of my “100-year-old-stew” chicken broth)
1 1/2 – 2 cups broccoli (fresh or frozen, thawed)
1 1/2 – 2 cups leftover cooked asparagus – or 1 heaping cup puree
4 oz. Neufchatel or Greek cream cheese
1 – 2 oz. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
Salt, fresh ground pepper, & red pepper flakes, to taste

Instructions

Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter or add the olive oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the onion, celery and garlic and cook until the onion is soft and translucent, stirring frequently. Stir in the bay leaves and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Let cook for about 10 – 15 minutes.
Stir in the broccoli and cook just until it’s tender. Pour the soup mixture into a blender, then add the asparagus, cream cheese and parmesan cheese and use an immersion blender to blend until smooth. Or, do like I did and pour it all into the largest cup of the Ninja blender/food processor and blend it that way.
Pour back into the pan and stir in the seasonings, then taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. Heat again over medium low heat until hot but not boiling. If desired, garnish with a drizzle of olive oil, freshly ground black pepper, and Aleppo pepper flakes. A little more fresh ground parmesan is nice on top too.

Notes

Take care when blending hot liquids. If using a Ninja or other blender container, you may want to let the soup cool a bit before blending especially if your asparagus is hot.

If you have fresh herbs like basil, thyme, tarragon or chives, feel free to toss a few fresh herbs in! They will add to the flavor.

RECIPE SOURCE: Sumptuous Spoonfuls – https://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/ … © Copyright 2022, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.

Keywords: Broccoli, Asparagus, Cheese, Parmesan, Gluten Free, Heart Healthy, Diabetic