Broccoli Cheddar Soup Sweet Potato Bowls are what I like to call healthy, comfort food. Creamy, cheesy and from-scratch broccoli cheddar soup poured over sweet potatoes or regular potatoes! Delicious for dinner or lunch meal-prep.
The inspiration for these Broccoli Cheddar Soup Sweet Potato Bowls actually came from my high school days. I don’t know about you, but I wasn’t a big fan of school lunches. My school was pretty small (we had about 120 students in our graduating class), so the options were limited. If you didn't want hot lunch or bring lunch from home, you ate salad from the salad bar or chocolate chip cookies (3 for $1. Everyone loved them) and slushies from the snack bar. But, on Wednesdays, they offered soup and potato bar, which was my jam. I would load a baked potato up with a cheesy vegetable soup, and it was so good!
Things got even better a few months ago, though. I had leftover broccoli cheddar soup on hand, but I wanted to make it a little heartier for dinner. I didn’t have any regular potatoes, only sweet potatoes. Guess what. Sweet potatoes loaded up with broccoli cheddar soup are so delicious. And that's how this recipe was born.
Typically, I eat sweet potatoes with orange flesh (like everyone), but I found some with white flesh and decided to use those this time! White sweet potatoes have a creamier, crumbly texture while orange sweet potatoes have a sweeter, softer flesh.
Also, did you know when you buy a “yam” at the grocery store you are most likely buying an orange sweet potato? Most grocery stores in the U.S. don’t actually sell yams. Not to confuse consumers, somewhere along the line, orange sweet potatoes got labeled as “yams.” Yams are very starchy and dry and can grow up to 5 feet long. I did a little research 😉 I also once saw some VERY big yams being sold on the side of the road in Jamaica.
If you’re not a fan of sweet potatoes, you can always swap them out for a good ol’ regular baked potato because that’ll still be bomb. Actually, another quick story for ya. There are only two things in the world that my dad will NOT eat. Sweet potatoes and squash. He says it’s baby food. But, you give him some cow tongue, and he’s happy. Haha. I don’t get it.
Sweet potatoes or regular baked potatoes, the choice is all yours, my friends! Either way, I know you’ll love these potato bowls! The best part? The soup can be made in the amount of time it takes to bake your potatoes in the oven. Wham, bam, thank you, ma’am!
P.S. Don't forget to serve with a hearty slice of bread!
Broccoli Cheddar Soup Sweet Potato Bowls
Ingredients
- 4 sweet potatoes (or regular potatoes)
- Olive oil
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 3 carrots thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups half and half
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- 1 bunch of broccoli, cut into florets (about 4 cups)
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 F. Prick potatoes all over with a fork, rub with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake on a sheet pan for 40-50 minutes or until fork tender.
- Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and carrots and cook 7-10 minutes until onion are soft and carrots slightly tender. Mix in garlic and cook for another minute.
- Mix the flour into butter and vegetables and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the chicken stock and whisk until smooth. Mix in the milk, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and broccoli florets. Bring to a simmer then reduce heat back to medium, stirring frequently. Cover pot and cook for 20-30 minutes until broccoli is tender.
- If desired, use an immersion blender to puree some of the soup or transfer half the soup to a blender to puree then return to the pot.
- Stir in cheese until melted and combined.
- Split potatoes open down the center and place them in bowls. Cover with lots of broccoli cheddar soup and extra shredded cheddar cheese.
Notes
- Sweet potatoes can be pretty large. Depending on the size of the potatoes, one potato could easily feed two people.
- If you don’t like sweet potatoes, regular potatoes will work just as well.
Leave a Reply