Broccoli Cheese Soup

I finally got around to trying this Cooking Light recipe this week. I'm not going to worry about trying to photograph it because it will look like a bowl of green sludge ... not that appealing since I don't have the time or means to set up a pretty photo shoot for a bowl of soup. Heck, with my two little boys, I don't have the time to eat a bowl of soup in peace.

But I did have time to make this since it requires minimal hands-on time. It's a tasty soup, worth repeating, but I almost think I'd do it as a side for a main meal as it's a fairly light meal.

Broccoli-Cheese Soup
3 cups chicken stock
1 3/4 cups broccoli florets, coarsely chopped
1 cup diced onion
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup half-and-half
4 oz. sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

Combine first seven ingredients (through garlic) in a large saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Blend using an immersion blender or regular blender until smooth. Stir in half-and-half and 2 oz. cheese. Top each serving with remaining cheese. Makes 4 servings.