When the weather is crummy and comfort food is desired, but you don’t necessarily want to gorge yourself on burgers and fries, this recipe is perfect. Its creamy, slightly heavy (but still light!), and delicious. There’s plenty of protein from the beans and cheese, with tons of flavor from the broccoli and garlic. The onions add a tinge of sweetness and the garam marsala adds just a hint of je ne sais quoi. Feel free to add more if you’d like – it’s that good! This is perfect with crusty bread and a salad. Or straight out of the pot. No judging!

Recipe

• 2-3 broccoli crowns – chopped and stems removed
• 1 bulb of garlic – roasted
• 1 onion – caramelized
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup cheddar and Parmesan cheese
• 2 cans white beans (I used northern white and garbanzo)
• 1-2 tsp garam marsala
• 3 TBS grapeseed oil (or other high smoke point oil) + 2 TBS more for the garlic
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400.

On a baking sheet, toss the broccoli together with grapeseed oil and garam marsala. Separately, chop the top off the garlic bulb (the opposite end of the roots), place in a piece of tinfoil and drizzle with olive or grapeseed oil. Fold up so oil doesn’t spill out.

Place the broccoli and garlic in the oven for 30 minutes or until both are nice and browned.

While the veggies are roasting in the oven, pour the beans into a soup pot and cover with 1 cup of broth. Bring to a boil for a few minutes, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until beans are tender.

Once the roasting veggies are nice and toasted, carefully add them, and 3/4 of the caramelized onions to the pot (reserve the rest for toppings). The garlic will be smoking hot, so feel free to let it cool before squeezing the cloves out of their snug little homes.

Once everything is mixed together in the pot, add the rest of the broth, and grab an immersion blender (a regular blender works fine too). For a super smooth soup, mix for longer, if you like it chunky, less blending is preferable.

Now comes the easy part. Ha! Add the cheese, and let the soup simmer for one hour to allow the flavors to marry. Salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls, top with extra onions and broccoli if desired and dig in!

Bon Appetit!