Dairy-Free Broccoli Soup with Bacon (AIP, Paleo, Whole30)

Broccoli is a soup rockstar, always has been. We know it from the iconic broccoli-and-cheese pairing, where it’s long been considered the undisputed headliner. But this dairy-free broccoli soup proves it doesn’t need cream and cheese to take center stage. Using broccoli crowns gives us the best of both worlds: plenty of tender florets plus just enough of the dense crown stem to create a naturally thick, velvety base (alongside a couple of parsnips). Plus we’re amping it up with a few cloves of garlic confit. Then we go all-in on the soup toppings: bacon crumbles and a handful of roasted-til-charred chopped florets that are nearly impossible not to snack on straight off the sheet pan. This one will hit all the comfort-food notes you crave on a cold winter day.

How this recipe fits AIP, Paleo and Whole30

The biggest hurdle for making this Broccoli soup dairy-free for AIP, Paleo and Whole30 is finding alternatives to the dairy – specifically, cream and cheese. Parsnips go a long way to add body to the soup, so they stand in for a thickened, creamy soup base. There’s a scoop of nutritional yeast added right at the end that adds a hint of cheesiness without any dairy at all. If you’re sensitive to nutritional yeast, you can leave it out and the soup will still taste delicious. And of course, whenever you’re sourcing bacon, look for an AIP-compliant brand that uses natural curing methods instead of nitrates, and is sugar-free and nightshade-free.

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Start by prepping the broccoli. The best ratio of florets-to-stem comes from broccoli crowns. If you can’t find the crowns, go ahead and buy the long-stemmed broccoli at the store. You can stash away what you don’t use of the stem for another use. First, remove the florets from the crowns and set the stems off to the side. Then, take a handful of the florets and break them down into small pieces until you have about 1½ cups of small floret bits. Peel the parsnips and cut them into coins.

Lay six slices of bacon on a sheet pan and roast in the oven at 425° for about 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the bacon. My go-to compliant bacon brand is Butcher Box. Once the bacon is crisp, transfer it to a paper towel-lined plate to drain, then crumble it into bits for the soup topping. Don’t remove the rendered bacon fat from the pan — we’re going to use it to roast the tiny broccoli floret bits.

Toss the chopped florets with the rendered bacon fat and season generously with salt. If your bacon was very lean and didn’t give off a lot of fat, you can supplement with a little avocado oil or solid cooking fat of your choice. Roast the florets for 7 to 10 minutes, or until they’re very browned and crispy around the edges. Season them with a little more salt, if needed, then set them aside with the bacon crumbles.

Now to make the soup. Sweat chopped onion in avocado oil until translucent and soft, then add in two roasted or confit garlic cloves.

You can get my recipe at this link to see how to slow-cook garlic in duck fat until it’s sweet and jammy. If you don’t have time to make the confit garlic, or don’t have a stash in the freezer, you can use two minced cloves of fresh garlic as a substitute.

Add in the stems from the broccoli crowns along with the parsnips and 6 cups of chicken stock. Cover and bring the stock to a simmer, then uncover and cook until the broccoli and the parsnips are fork-tender. This will take around 15 minutes.

Then, add in the florets and allow them to simmer until they are fork tender, but still bright green, about five minutes. You may have past experience with overcooked broccoli — it’s bitter, can smell strongly of cabbage and loses its vibrant green color. Since the florets take much less time to cook than the stems, by cooking the stems and the florets separately, we’ll bring out the best in both, without overcooking or dulling the flavor of the tender florets. At this time, also sprinkle in the nutritional yeast.

Blend the soup either with an immersion blender (stick blender), or transfer in batches to a high-powered countertop blender. Blend until the soup is silky and smooth. If the soup is grainy, just keep blending. You’ll have at least two cups of stock in reserve, so if the soup is too thick, you can add a splash or two of stock at a time to thin it out. Finally, season with salt to taste. You might even choose to stir in additional nutritional yeast.

Serve this dairy-free broccoli soup in big bowls topped with the crunchy broccoli crumbles and bacon bits. This is a delicious sippable soup that’s a total classic. Especially for broccoli lovers, you’ll look forward to making this dairy-free broccoli soup for AIP, Paleo and Whole30 meal prep.

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Dairy-Free Broccoli Soup with Bacon (AIP, Paleo, Whole30)

5 from 1 vote

Broccoli crowns and parsnips are blended into a naturally creamy, dairy-free broccoli soup finished with crispy bacon and roasted broccoli floret crumbles.

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Total Time:45 minutes mins

Servings: 8 servings

Author: Christina Marche

Ingredients

• 2 lb broccoli crowns, about 3 large crowns
• ½ lb bacon
• 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 cloves confit garlic
• 2 large parsnips, peeled and cut into coins (about 2 cups)
• 6-8 cups chicken stock, bone broth, or vegetable stock
• 1½ tbsp non-fortified nutritional yeast

Instructions

• Prep the broccoli by removing all the florets from the crowns. Take a small portion of those florets and chop them into small pieces until you have about 1½ cups; set these aside for the crispy topping. Leave the remaining florets and the short crown stems in large pieces to simmer in the soup.
• Heat the oven to 425°. Arrange the bacon on a baking sheet and roast until the fat has rendered and the slices are crisp, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel–lined plate and crumble or chop into small bits for topping.
• On the same baking sheet, toss the finely chopped broccoli florets in the rendered bacon fat, season generously with salt, and roast until deeply caramelized and crisp, 7 to 10 minutes. Set aside.
• In a large pot, warm 1 tablespoon avocado oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent.
• Stir in the roasted garlic, broccoli stems, parsnips, and 1 teaspoon salt. Pour in 6 cups of the stock, reserving the remaining 2 cups to thin the soup later if needed.
• Cover and bring to a simmer. Uncover and cook until the stems and parsnips are tender, about 15 minutes.
• Add the remaining broccoli florets and simmer until bright green and fork-tender, about 5 minutes more. Stir in the nutritional yeast and remove from the heat.
• Blend with an immersion blender until smooth, or work in batches with a countertop blender. Return the soup to the pot and season to taste. If needed, thin with additional stock to your preferred consistency.
• Serve topped with the crispy bacon and roasted broccoli florets.

Notes

You can substitute two cloves of minced garlic for the garlic confit, if preferred.

Course: Soup

Cuisine: AIP, AIP Modified, Paleo, Whole30