Broccoli Cheddar Soup

This soup was an accident, for me. I had planned to make a different soup, and bought all but one of the right ingredients for it. As proof of my "not-a-cook-ness," I will confess that I bought one bunch of green onions instead of one bunch of leeks. When I returned home and began to read the recipe, I noticed the improbable smallness of my "leeks." There was no way my "one bunch" weighed one and a half pounds. Their true name surfaced in my mind, and I knew I had to shake up the dinner plans. A trip to the cooler revealed broccoli needing to be used, and a block of cheese. Aha!

Broccoli Cheddar Soup
if serving solo, only two adult dinner servings
Adapted from Food Network

6 T. unsalted butter (I only had 1 T. so subbed 5 T. canola oil)
1 bunch green onions, cleaned and thinly sliced (use only white and light green portion)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
3 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 head of broccoli, minced to oblivion (see pic)
2 1/2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated cheddar cheese, plus more for garnish if desired.

1) Melt the butter in Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add oil. Add the green onion and cook until tender, ~5 minutes.

2) Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, 3-4 minutes. Then, gradually whisk in the milk until smooth. Add the chicken broth, bay leaves and nutmeg, then season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, until thickened, about 20 minutes.

3) While base simmers, prepare broccoli. Add the broccoli to the base. As the pieces are so small, it will cook very quickly. Once broccoli is cooked, remove bay leaves.

4) Add the cheese to the soup and whisk over medium heat until melted. Add up to 3/4 cup water if the soup is too thick. Ladle into bowls and garnish with cheese if desired.

5) YUM! (would look better if I had anything besides white bowls!)