Creamy Broccoli Soup with feta cream

This quick and easy soup has a good garlic hit balanced by tangy lemon, with the smooth and cooling feta and yogurt cream adding a contrasting highlight. Serve with freshly baked bread or salad.

Recipe from Feasts of Veg By Nina Olsson.

Put all the ingredients for the feta cream in a blender or food processor and whizz until smooth. Set aside until serving (If you like to make your own tofu feta, there’s a recipe in my latest book Grains + Greens).

Heat a deep saucepan over medium heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and fry the shallots for 5–6 minutes, stirring. Stir in all the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Transfer the soup to the blender or food processor and blend until smooth, or blend in the pan with an immersion blender. Serve topped with a drizzle of the feta cream.

Both the soup and the feta cream can be prepared 1–2 days in advance and kept, tightly covered or in an airtight container, in the fridge. Reheat the soup gently before serving.

Serves 4
olive oil, for frying
2 shallots, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 litre vegetable stock
2 medium potatoes, peeled and finely diced
600g broccoli florets
a handful of basil or mint
salt, to taste
pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Feta cream:
100g organic feta cheese, crumbled, or vegan yogurt mixed
with1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
100ml Greek or vegan yogurt
1 teaspoon honey or agave syrup
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

vegan and gluten-free notes

VE Opt for vegan yogurt and nutritional yeast rather than feta cheese, vegan rather than Greek yogurt and agave syrup.
GF Opt for tamari sauce; serve with gluten-free bread or omit the bread.