A creamy broccoli and spinach soup that is as flavourful as it is easy to make. This soup is fresh and nutritious, it’s the perfect soup to enjoy for a quick lunch or light supper.

I’m not normally a massive fan of blended broccoli soup. I love broccoli, but nothing fills me with more dread then yellowing overcooked broccoli florets. There’s nothing appetising about mushy broccoli. So I decided to come up with a quick broccoli soup that I’d actually want to eat.

Here’s the result and I think it turned out pretty darn good. This broccoli and spinach soup packs tons of flavour but it’s wonderfully light and fresh. Meaning that you don’t have to worry about feeling horribly bloated after enjoying a second bowl of this delicious broccoli soup!

How to make broccoli and spinach soup

This broccoli, spinach and basil soup is delightfully easy to make. It takes no time at all to prepare. This is the perfect meal for when you’re stuck on a zoom meeting/call and looking for a quick something to prepare that isn’t just a sandwich.

First Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Toss in the 2 diced onions and 4 cloves of diced garlic. Cook gently for 5 minutes until the onion has softened.

Pour in the 400g cubed potato, 400g chopped broccoli, 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast and 1 and 1/2 litres of vegetable stock. Bring the pan to the boil, then turn down to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 – 15 minutes until the potato and broccoli are fork soft.

You’ll be surprised how quickly the potato and broccoli cook so don’t be tempted to boil the veggies into oblivion. The key to this soup is to cook the vegetables until they are just ready. Any longer and they start to yellow and lose flavour. If in doubt check earlier rather than later. You can always cook for longer but you can’t “un-cook” something.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and tip in 200g of spinach, 20g of basil and the juice of 1 lemon. Stir the greens into the soup until it they have just wilted.

I normally wait till the very last moment to stir in the greens. Right before serving I toss in the greens and blend. This keeps the wonderful colour of the soup and means the taste is as fresh as you can get.

Use a stick blender or conventional blender to blitz the soup until smooth. Season to taste with salt and a good helping of freshly cracked black pepper.

Serve the soup with the remainder of the basil scattered over each dish. Top each bowl with a sprinkling of the toasted pine nuts and a glug of extra virgin olive oil.

Other broccoli and spinach soup recipe ideas

Broccoli and spinach are a wonderful pairing. The irony freshness of the spinach balances the almost sweet broccoli taste. The combination of the two greens makes a savoury yet fresh soup that works well with lots of flavours. This basil and lemon variant is just one of many. Here’s a few more ideas for you to try:

• spicy broccoli and spinach soup – remove the lemon, basil and pine nuts from the base recipe. Add 1 chopped red chilli and 1 stick of sliced lemongrass to the garlic and onion when initially frying. Add the juice of 2 limes when wilting your spinach into the soup. Serve with toasted peanuts.
• broccoli and spinach peasants soup – Add in 4 sticks of chopped celery to the garlic and onion at the beginning of the soup. Then add 1 cup of brown rice and 1 can of cannellini beans to the soup when pouring in the stock. Increase the cook time to 20 minutes until the rice is nice and plump. Makes a heartier soup that can fill you up after a long day.
• curried broccoli and spinach soup – remove the lemon, basil and pine nuts from the base recipe. Toss in 1 tablespoon of medium curry powder and 1 teaspoon of turmeric when adding the stock. Add a can of chickpeas when pouring in the greens.

If you like the look of this soup you’ll love…

• Carrot and roast broccoli soup
• Spicy swede and lentil soup
• Spring greens and lemon grass soup

Broccoli, Spinach and Basil Soup

A fresh and nutritious green soup. This soup has flavourful broth with a wonderful lemony zing.

4.29 from 7 votes

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 4

Course Main Course, Soup

This meal is around 93% less polluting than the average UK meal.

Eating this recipe will save around 2.72 KG CO2e per person.

That’s equivalent to the emissions produced driving 22.51 KM in a modern car.

How do I calculate this?

Ingredients

• 400 g Broccoli (roughly chopped)
• 400 g Potatoes (peeled and cubed)
• 2 Medium Onions (peeled and finely diced)
• 4 Cloves Garlic (peeled and finely diced)
• 1 1/2 Litres Vegetable Stock
• 200 g Spinach
• 30 g Basil (roughly chopped)
• 2 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Lemon (zested and juiced)
• 30 g Pine Nuts (lightly toasted)

Instructions

• Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Toss in the 2 diced onions and 4 cloves of diced garlic. Cook gently for 5 minutes until the onion has softened.
• Pour in the 400g cubed potato, 400g chopped broccoli, 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast and 1 and 1/2 litres of vegetable stock. Bring the pan to the boil, then turn down to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 – 15 minutes until the potato and broccoli are fork soft.
• Remove the saucepan from the heat and tip in 200g of spinach, 20g of basil and the juice of 1 lemon. Stir the greens into the soup until it they have wilted.
• Use a stick blender or conventional blender to blitz the soup until smooth. Season to taste with salt and a good helping of freshly cracked black pepper.
• Serve the soup with the remainder of the basil scattered over each dish. Top each bowl with a a helping of the toasted pine nuts, a sprinkling of the zest from the lemon and a glug of extra virgin olive oil.

Trying this recipe?

Hit me up on one of the following platforms, I’d love to see your creations!