By Kathryn Reed

Only one food warms me up through and through – that’s soup.

I could have soup every day and never get tired of it. But I do like trying new recipes.

The one below did not disappoint. It is from the September issue of Cooking Light magazine.

Besides being ideal on a cold winter day or night, it’s easy to make.

I used veggie broth. And because a carton has 4 cups I used the whole thing. It meant the soup was a little thinner and less green, but the flavor was still outstanding. I also used more garlic, but to me garlic is practically a food group. I made it easy and bought cheese that was already shredded. I also skipped the parsley because it’s more of a garnish than anything else. But if you are serving this to guests, the parsley would make it look pretty, as would a few grinds of fresh pepper.

 Broccoli-Cheese Soup

3 C unsalted chicken stock

1¾ C broccoli florets, coarsely chopped (about 8 ounces)

1 C diced yellow onion

½ C chopped carrot

3/8 tsp salt

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

¾ C half-and-half

4 ounces shredded reduced-fat extra-sharp cheddar cheese, divided

¼ C fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Combine first 7 ingredients in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until broccoli is tender. Pour soup into a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Return soup to pan. Stir in half-and-half and 2 ounces cheese. Top evenly with remaining cheese and parsley.