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If you’re looking for a lower carb, lower fat alternative to your favorite broccoli cheese soup, this cream-free version with just 5-ingredients (not counting seasonings) may be the one for you.
Mine didn’t turn out as thick as some other variations, but it tastes great and comes together in no time thanks to the InstantPot.
Instead of gobs of high-fat ingredients such as butter and cream, this soup features the creamy goodness of winter squash to help thicken it, and also add just a hint of sweetness. Definitely a winner in my book!
How Many Calories and WW Points in this Low Fat Soup?
According to my calculations, each 1-1/3-cups serving has about 139 calories.
To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!
How to Make Healthy Broccoli Cheddar Soup in the Instant Pot
Step 1: Gather and prepare all ingredients.
Step 2: Add olive oil to inner pot and press Sauté button. Add the onion and stir occasionally until the onion is translucent and softened, about 3 minutes.
Step 3: Stir in the the chicken broth, squash, broccoli, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Step 4: Lock the lid in place and move the steam release handle to Sealing position. Choose Pressure Cook (HIGH Pressure) and adjust the time to 8 minutes.
Step 5: Once the cook time is finished, move the steam release handle to Venting position and quick release the pressure, being careful to not get burned from the steam.
Step 6: Remove the lid and stir in the shredded cheese.
Puree the soup to desired consistency using a handheld immersion blender (affiliate link) (stick blender) or in batches using your blender (affiliate link). If using your blender, be sure to work in small batches to reduce the chance of getting burned by the hot soup.
Pureeing soup in theVitaMix
Step 7: Ladle, or pour, soup into bowls.
Step 8: Store any leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Substitutions, Variations & Cooking Notes
Make this soup vegetarian by substituting reduced-sodium vegetable stock for the chicken stock.
Substitute any winter squash for the butternut: pumpkin, acorn squash, delicata, spaghetti squash and kabocha would all work well.
Save time by picking up a bag of pre-cut butternut squash at the grocery store—I’ve seen it available in most stores, including Wal-Mart.
If you use frozen butternut squash, let it thaw in the refrigerator and then drain any excess water before adding to the recipe, otherwise your soup may end up on thin side.
If you like this healthy broccoli cheddar soup, be sure to check out my other lighter soup recipes, including Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup, St. Patrick Cheddar Soup, Crock Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup, 4-Ingredient Slow Cooker Broccoli Cheese Soup and Skinny Broccoli Cauliflower Soup
If you’ve made this Low Carb Instant Pot Soup, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
Easy Healthy Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash
- 3 cups fresh broccoli florets
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup fresh grated cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Add olive oil to inner pot and press Sauté button. Add the onion and stir occasionally until the onion is translucent and softened, about 3 minutes.
- Stir in the the chicken broth, sqash, broccoli, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Lock the lid in place and move the steam release handle to Sealing position. Choose Pressure Cook (HIGH Pressure) and adjust the time to 8 minutes.
- Once the cook time is finished, move the steam release handle to Venting position and quick release the pressure, being careful to not get burned from the steam.
- Remove the lid and stir in the shredded cheese. Puree the soup to desired consistency using a handheld immersion blender (affiliate link) (stick blender (affiliate link)) or in batches using your blender. If using your blender, be sure to work in small batches to reduce the chance of getting burned by the hot soup.
- Ladle, or pour, soup into bowls.
- Store any leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
A note about WW Points
If you're following Weight Watchers, all the recipes here on Simple Nourished Living have been updated for the new WW program, with points displayed in the recipe card. The Check the WW Points link in the recipe card takes you to the Weight Watchers App where you can edit it using the WW recipe builder or add it to your day.
(Must be logged into WW account on a mobile device, such as smartphone or tablet).
