Soup season is in full swing, and sometimes, it can feel hard to find a soup recipe that’s both delicious and weight-loss-friendly at the same time.
One of the most popular soup restaurants out there is Panera, the beloved cafe chain that produces fan-favorites, including their famous broccoli cheddar soup. The soup made at the restaurant, while tasty, is known for being high in fat and calories. So, a viral weight loss content creator, Samantha Milton, who lost 250 pounds, shared her recipe for a “low-calorie” version of the soup, creating her own “Panera dupe.” Read more about how she makes it below.
@smallersam_pcos Broccoli Cheddar Soup (320 cals + 37g protein) This recipe makes 8 servings, about 2 cups each: -2 large, Carrots -2 tablespoon, minced garlic -2 stock, Celery -2 tbsp, Olive oil -1/3 cup, All-purpose flour -1 cup, chopped, Yellow onion -24 oz container, low fat Good Culture cottage cheese -1 lb, Ham (cubed) -20 oz, Broccoli Florets -1 cup, low fat shredded cheddar cheese -32 oz(s), Chicken Bone Broth -2 cup, Ultrafilter Fat Free Milk -season to taste with salt, pepper, oregano, and Kinder’s Buttery Garlic & Herb blend. #cheese #broccoli #soup #protein #easyrecipe ♬ original sound – SmallerSam_PCOS
Sam Starts Prepping Her ‘Low Calorie’ Broccoli Cheddar Soup
To prep her Panera dupe soup, Sam begins by adding a drizzle of olive oil to a soup pot on the stove before adding three finely chopped veggies: one medium yellow onion, two large carrots, and two stalks of celery.
Once her vegetables have cooked down and tenderized, she adds a pound of chopped ham to the pot and stirs everything together, allowing the ham to brown a bit. While the ham and veggies are cooking, in a separate pot, she steams 20 ounces of fresh broccoli florets in 32 ounces of chicken bone broth.
As her broccoli steams until it’s tender, she gives her ham and veggies a stir before adding two tablespoons of minced garlic and one-third cup of flour. She stirs those in before adding a 20-ounce container of low-fat cottage cheese, allowing everything to cook until the cheese curdles and melts.
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Sam Finishes Her Soup And Serves It Up
Once she has a nice thick base for her soup with the veggies, ham, and cottage cheese, she starts to thin it down by adding two cups of low-fat milk and adds some seasonings.
She seasons with some flaky salt, crushed black pepper, oregano, and buttery garlic & herb seasoning. For the classic pale yellow color and extra cheesey flavor, Sam adds one cup of reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese. Once the cheese is melted, she pours her cooked broccoli and the residual bone broth into the pot before giving everything a good stir. She lets her soup simmer and thicken for a few minutes on the stove before serving it up.
The content creator tops every bowl with shredded cheese and a sprinkle of chives before dishing it out.
"This is amazing!" commented one of her followers.
