The weather has finally simmered down, making it cool enough for cozy keto soup! Obviously you don’t need to be eating a keto diet to enjoy this delicious Broccoli and Cheese slow cooker meal. BUT, if you are watching your sugar, grains, and carbs, it’s absolutely PERFECT for you.
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The perfect keto soup
I’ve been wanting to make keto soup for a while now. I make a ton of dishes that are sugar-free, grain-free and low carb, but I haven’t dived into many slow cooker recipes. Mayyyyybe it’s because it’s been 9,000 degrees here for the past few months. Either way, the weather has taken a quick, crisp New England twist and I’m ready for all things cozy.
This dish is filled with all things friendly for those of you eating a ketogenic diet: Broccolli, Cheese, Grassfed Butter, and bone broth are the heros, while a little garlic and a few scallions pull it all together. Only 3.5 Net carbs per serving!
Frozen or fresh broccoli works
You know I’m all about easy-peasy, so I used frozen broccoli instead of fresh. Here’s the thing, fresh is…fresh, but it’s an extra few minutes to wash and prep an entire head of broccoli. I buy organic, frozen broccoli florets at Stop and Shop and pop them in the microwave for just a few minutes to thaw before I stick them in the crockpot. It’s much less mess and less prep, making this a really (really) easy keto soup to get slow cooking on Sunday.
Use bone broth or veggie stock (to make it vegetarian)
I chose to use bone broth for this soup because it’s nutritious, anti-inflammatory and filled with healthy amino acids for better sleep. If you’re eating low carb, you definitely need to be replacing electrolytes and bone broth is an excellent way to do it. So, why not incorporate it into your Keto soup? Done and done!
If you want to make this a vegetarian dish, just swap out the bone broth for veggie stock. Most brands are still highly nutritious and low carb, keeping things friendly for your way of eating.
A little xanthan gum thickens it up
When I think of Broccolli and Cheese Soup the first thing that comes to mind is that it’s thick and creamy. To replicate that in this keto soup, add a little xanthan gum is a food stabilizer and thickener. You only need 1-2 tsp of it for this dish. When combined with all of that melty cheese, it thickens things up just perfectly!
Make it smooth and creamy
You can eat this soup a couple of different ways. I chose to use my emersion blender (LOVE IT!) and break up all the thick, chunky pieces of broccoli to create a smooth and creamy finish. But, if you like your soup chunkier, you can totally skip the hand blender and serve as is. The broccoli has plenty of time to marinate in the bone broth, garlic, and other spices, so by the time the slow cooker stops, it’s super soft and delectable! If you don’t have an emersion blender, but want to make it creamy, you can slowly (I reapeat…slowly) spoon it into a blender and blend everything together. Tedious, slow process, which is why I’m so obsessed with my 2-second hand blender 🙂
How long will it take?
The prep for this keto soup is like 4 seconds. Well, not really, but it’s super-fast (like 15 minutes at the most). Once you get everything in the crockpot, you slow cook it on high for 1 hour and then set it to low for another 1-3 hours. The longer it slow cooks, the better those flavors blend and marry, and jive. So, I get it going around 2 pm and let it do its thang until like, 6.
I’ve been using this crockpot for a few years and love it (basically because it’s a large enough size to create a ton of meal prep servings or feed an army, whichever you choose). If you don’t have a crockpot, you can do everything in a dutch oven, but you’ll need to tie up your oven for that. Annnnnd, I’m thinkin’ you’ll want to be using that oven for dessert: These, sugar-free Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes maybe?
Broccoli and cheese soup recipe
The recipe is below! If you’re not feeding eight, make sure you have a bunch of airtight containers to store in the fridge for lunch or dinner during the week or freeze for another day. Enjoy!
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servings
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- 2 lbs Frozen Broccoli Florets (you can use fresh broccoli too - 4 cups!)
- 1 scallion
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 3 cups bone broth
- 8 tbsp salted grass fed butter
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tbsp italian seasoning
- 1 tsp himalayan pink salt
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 12 ounces cheddar cheese
Ingredients
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- Turn slow cooker on high and add your butter.
- Then, pop your frozen broccoli in the microwave for 3 minutes to thaw and chop into small pieces along with your scallions (small, thin pieces). Set aside.
- Mix in your heavy whipping cream, bone broth, xanthan gum and minced garlic into the slow cooker with the butter. Stir well until combined.
- Add your veggies and spices (Italian seasoning and salt) and stir everything well. Set slow cooker for 1 hour on high.
- At the one hour mark, mix well and reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally for the next 2-3 hours.
- About ten minutes before you're ready to serve, add the cheese in small increments, stirring each time to ensure it's melted and combined.
- Serve with bacon, sour cream or whatever you choose!
SERVING SIZE: 1 cup (makes 8 servings)
MACROS: 412 calories | 25.6 g fat | 14 g protein | 3.5 net carbs
Nutritional Info Disclaimer: I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I provide nutritional information for my recipes as a courtesy based upon the ingredients I'm using. I encourage you to find a nutritional calculator you like best and calculate individual nutrition info based upon the ingredients you are using. All carb counts are based upon total carbs unless otherwise noted.
MORE EASY, LOW CARB RECIPES HERE!
*As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. Post may contain affiliate or referral links. I earn a small commission if you make a purchase through my links, which helps me continue on this fabulous journey of blogging! Full disclaimers avail. here.
