You'd never guess that this creamy vegan broccoli soup is totally dairy-free! It's made of a rich, savory blend of potatoes, veggies, and herbs.
Drumroll, please! This vegan broccoli soup recipe is super creamy, comforting, and brimming with cheesy flavor. I started working on it after I posted a photo of this gorgeous pile of broccoli on Instagram with a call out for broccoli recipe requests. Overwhelmingly, people asked for a healthy/vegan broccoli cheese soup. Jack loves cheesy broccoli soup (and most cheesy things, to be honest), so we were both excited to take on the challenge. I’m happy to report that the results do not disappoint!
This vegan broccoli soup recipe is not to be confused with cream of broccoli soup. I have a super delicious, very green, Creamy Broccoli Soup on page 55 of my first cookbook. It’s made with leeks, coconut milk, broccoli, lemon, and spinach. It’s light, healthy, and tastes similar to a soup my mom made for me while I was growing up.
This recipe – vegan broccoli cheddar soup – is thicker, richer, and more cheese-like. I think you’re going to love it.
Vegan Broccoli Soup Recipe Ingredients
Tasting this vegan broccoli soup, you’d never guess that it’s made without cheese or cream. Its creamy texture and rich taste come from these plant-based ingredients:
- Broccoli, of course! I get tons of requests for recipes that use a whole bunch of broccoli, so here, I do – stalk and all! I blend the stalk into the soup’s creamy base and pulse in the florets for texture. If you’re looking for more whole-vegetable recipes, try making a broccoli salad or cauliflower rice next. Waste not, want not!
- Cashews and potatoes – This combination is a great one for giving vegan recipes a gooey cheesy texture. Like in my vegan cheese recipe, it makes this soup rich and creamy.
- Carrots – For cheesy color.
- Celery, onion, and garlic – They add savory depth of flavor.
- Apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, and lemon juice – For tang.
- Fresh dill – It’s the secret ingredient that ties this soup together! It helps give it a delicious cheesy flavor without an ounce of cheese.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
To make this recipe, start by sautéing the onion, carrots, celery, and broccoli stems until they soften. Stir in the potatoes and garlic. Then, add the broth and simmer!
Meanwhile, steam all but 1 cup of the broccoli florets until they’re tender, but still bright green.
When the potatoes are soft, transfer the soup to a blender along with the cashews, vinegar, and mustard, and blend until smooth. Add the broccoli florets that you’ve steamed, as well as the lemon juice and dill. Pulse until the florets are incorporated, but still chunky. Enjoy!
Vegan Broccoli Soup Recipe Tips
- Top it with something crunchy. Whenever I’m making creamy soup, I love to top it with crunchy garnishes for textural contrast. While the soup simmers, roast the last of the broccoli florets and make a batch of quick homemade croutons. These crispy toppings will take your vegan broccoli soup to a whole new level!
- Don’t blend the broccoli too much. You don’t want this soup to become a smooth puree; it should have some texture. Blend the potatoes, celery, onions, broccoli stalk, and carrots until they’re completely smooth, but just pulse in the steamed florets. They add lovely green flecks and texture to the soup.
- Don’t skip the dill! Even if dill isn’t your thing, I urge you to try it in this recipe. It’s essential for mimicking the rich, complex flavor of sharp cheddar cheese. If you want to skip it, I recommend blending in a few tablespoons of nutritional yeast to make the soup taste more cheesy.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
If you love this vegan broccoli soup, try one of these delicious soup recipes next:
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Best Lentil Soup
- Many-Veggie Vegetable Soup
- Pumpkin Soup
- Tomato Basil Soup
- Creamy Potato Soup
- Or any of these 30 Best Soup Recipes!
And for more tasty vegan recipes, check out this post!
Vegan Broccoli Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- ½ cup chopped celery
- ⅓ cup chopped carrots
- 1 lb. broccoli, stems diced, florets chopped
- 1 small yukon gold potato, diced (1 cup)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 3 cups cubed bread, for croutons
- ½ cup raw cashews
- 1½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup fresh dill
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line 2 small baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, broccoli stems, salt, and pepper and sauté until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the potatoes and garlic and stir, then add the broth and simmer for 20 minutes until the potatoes are soft. Let cool slightly.
- Set aside 1 cup of the broccoli florets to roast as a topping for the soup. Place the remaining florets in a steamer basket, and set over a pot with 1-inch of water. Bring the water to a simmer, cover, and let steam 5 minutes, until the broccoli is tender.
- Meanwhile, place the reserved broccoli florets and the bread cubes on the baking sheets. Toss with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and roast until the bread is crispy and the broccoli is tender and browned around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Transfer the soup to the blender and add the cashews, apple cider vinegar, and mustard, and blend until creamy. Work in batches, if necessary. Add the steamed broccoli florets, dill, and lemon juice, and pulse until the broccoli is incorporated but still chunky. The soup should be thick; if it's too thick, add 1/2 cup water to thin to your desired consistency.
- Season to taste and serve the soup in bowls with the roasted broccoli and croutons on top.
Notes
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I really want to try this but my husband is allergic to cashews what can’t use as a substitute?
I was so impressed by how creamy and flavorful this recipe came together! A new staple dish in the house for sure.
p.s. I also added nutritional yeast!
This is my new fav! The dill really made a difference in depth of flavour. I’m allergic to cashews so I used 3 tablespoons of nutritional yeast to get a more creamy, cheesy taste.
This was delish and a great way to feed my 4yo veggies without complaints. My one gripe is that it takes SO many containers – 2 pots, 2 baking trays, 1 blender. It’s a lot to clean up and, as written, it doesn’t actually make a ton of soup. If you plan to make this recipe, plan to double it it make it worth your while. My family of 2 adults, 1 4yo basically ate the whole thing.
such good soup so good it’s like my schools
This soup was delicious! I would recommend doubling the quantities so as not to be disappointed as it quickly disappears.
Made this for dinner today and loved it. It has lots of flavor and is super healthy.
My husband who isn’t vegan even loved it!
I did add the nutritional yeast at the end – gave it a nice cheesy boost.
Hi there,
I don’t have a steamer basket, how else can I steam the broccoli? Microwave? Thanks’
Hi Liz, yep, you can steam it in the microwave.
I have made this soup a dozen times, it is so flavourful!
CANNOT handle how delicious this turned out. It is beyond creamy and just divine on a chilly fall night! Will be making this on repeat this fall and winter!!!!
Hi Amy, I’m so glad you loved it so much!
Was a big hit with family and friends at small wedding reception held in Yosemite this fall. IMG_5616.HEIC
Just made this broccoli soup for dinner…..yum! Thank you 🙂🙂🙂
Yummm!
Oh. Wow. This was my first Vegan recipe in a long while…and I cannot tell you how amazing this soup is. I am definitely making this again! Thank you Love & Lemons!
We are currently cooking freezable meals for when baby comes in 2 weeks and hoooooly smokes. This is the best vegan broccoli cheese soup I’ve ever had in my life, even from before when I wasn’t vegan. I’m sending the recipe to all my friends because it’s absurdly good. I’m so surprised and impressed. ITS SO CHEESEY, what is this sorcery?! And the lemon makes it so bright ugh the best!!!!
Wow! Well, I used Daiya cheddar style shreds Instead of raw cashews (because thats what I had) and I added nutritional yeast (because people recommended it). I also skipped the croutons and just steamed the broccoli in the microwave (because I’m a cheater). Amazing! I’m not a vegan, but I like to try alternative recipes. This was a win! Honestly, the consistency did not suffer from using shreds instead of cashews. The veggies and potatoes made it plenty creamy. I thought I might have to add a thickener, but I didn’t. My husband exclaimed “pretty good!” (He’s not big on veggie soups.) Then I asked him “if I hadn’t told you there wasn’t cheese in it, would you have even noticed?” He replied “there’s no cheese in here?!” Apparently I left that fact out before serving. He said it was really good and tasted just like cheese. Definitely making again. Though, I kind of want to put beer in it for some reason! Beer Cheese and Broccoli Soup?
Ha, I’m so glad you both loved the soup 🙂
Best soup I’ve ever had! I think this is more delicious than the non-vegan version. Full of amazing flavors!
I’m so glad you loved it!
Hi! I made this soup yesterday, and it was absolutely delicious! I’m from South Africa, where cheesy broccoli soup is not really part of our food culture. I’d never heard of it, and I’ve never tried the non-vegan version. With this recipe, I never need to! All eaters loved it, and my dad – usually a meat-eater – had about five helpings. Thanks a lot!
Hi Ruth, I’m so glad you all loved it!
THIS. THIS IS THE REAL DEAL. I don’t even like dill that much, but the dill in this recipe really pulls the flavors together. I can’t believe how delicious this is!! I made it last week and I’m making it for this week AGAIN. I can’t stop eating it. Forever grateful to you for sharing this recipe ❤️
Hi Sandy, I’m so glad you loved the soup so much! Thank you for coming back to let me know!
Hi! Can this soup be frozen?
Hi Laurie, yep, the soup freezes well.
This was so delicious!!!! I loved it was even good without the cashews I had totally forgotten to add them by accident but once I tasted it and saw the consistency didn’t need them.
Hi Jessica, I’m so glad you loved it!