Easy Broccoli Asparagus Soup (Cafe-Style with vegan option)
This broccoli asparagus soup highlights the fresh flavors of its ingredients. You might not think it, but broccoli and asparagus go really well together. Easy and quick to make with just one pot and a blender, this asparagus and broccoli soup is a café-worthy dish that comes together super quick.
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Perfect for a light dinner, an easy cafe-style soup to take along to work or an elegant starter for guests. Best of all, this broccoli and asparagus soup uses only a handful of ingredients – the broccoli and asparagus are the stars of the show.
Today, I’m walking you through the entire process—from preparing the vegetables to blending the perfect creamy texture. This recipe takes the guesswork out of achieving a perfectly balanced soup. Plus, it is so easy to make a vegan asparagus broccoli soup – just don’t add the optional cream (or use vegan cream). It’s a creamy soup as is.
Why you will love this recipe:
- Simple fresh ingredients: Featuring broccoli and asparagus
- Easily adapt to the vegan version.
- Great value for money – no need for expensive ingredients
- Easy make in advance – heat up later
- Freezer friendly
- Better for you than store bought – no preservatives or stabilizers needed to extend shelf life.
- It’s super easy clean up. Just one bowl!
If you are looking for more asparagus recipes, try my creamy asparagus and dill soup, sweet potato and asparagus soup and asparagus ricotta quiche with phyllo dough (my absolute favorite asparagus recipe!)
Ingredients for Broccoli and Asparagus Soup
- Asparagus – I love using fresh asparagus when it is in season.
- Broccoli – Use the whole thing! No wastage here 🙂
- Olive oil
- Potatoes – these give the soup a nice creaminess, so adding cream is an option, but not necessary.
- Onion – the onion, garlic and the celery give the soup a depth of flavor, so you don’t need to use any bouillon cubes, which can sometimes drown out the natural flavors of the soup.
- Garlic
- Celery Stalk
- Lemon juice and lemon zest – gives the soup a nice spring taste
- Optional cream or vegan cream for extra creaminess
- Italian parsley – to garnish
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, Goat cheese or cheddar cheese for topping (optional)
Substitutions and Additions
- Fresh is best, but you can use frozen asparagus or broccoli.
- To make this a vegan dish, omit the heavy cream. The potatoes give it a nice creamy texture. Or you can add some vegan cream.
- Grated cheese. This is completely optional, and the soup tastes lovely as is, but if you love cheese like I do, grated cheese is very nice.
- No bouillon cubes and no need for any chicken broth or vegetable stock. The onion, celery, potatoes and lemon give the soup depth. I find adding vegetable or chicken stock detracts from the subtle flavor of asparagus and broccoli. But if you really, really don’t think you can live without adding the added stock powder, at least try making the soup as is. You can always add flavorings at the end, but I think you will find that you don’t need them. This soup is delicious as is.
Equipment
- Large pot
- Vegetable peeler
- Hand blender, blender or food processor
If you like this asparagus and broccoli soup, you might also like this creamy Baltic style asparagus and dill soup, this asparagus sweet potato soup and asparagus ricotta quiche with phyllo dough. Yum!
How to make Broccoli Asparagus Soup
Prepare the Vegetables: Finely dice the onion, garlic and celery. Peel the woody ends of the asparagus (or snap them off) and cut into pieces. Make sure you have about 500 grams of asparagus. Cut the broccoli into smaller pieces. Peel the potatoes and chop them up into smaller chunks.
Cook the Base Vegetables: In a large pot, heat oil and sauté onion and celery until soft (about 4–5 minutes). Add 4 cups water and the chopped potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes until the potatoes begin to soften.
Add the Broccoli: Add the broccoli florets pieces to the pot. Simmer for another 4 minutes.
Then, add the asparagus pieces, lemon juice and lemon zest and cook over medium heat for another 3 minutes or until all vegetables are tender. The asparagus should still be bright green. Take the pot off the stove.
Blend the Soup: Using a hand held blender, blend the soup until smooth. Or you can transfer the soup in batches to a regular blender or food processor. And, if you prefer, you can blend a bit less and have a chunky soup.
Season and Add Cream (Optional): The potatoes already give this broccoli asparagus soup a creamy consistency, but you can stir in the heavy cream or vegan cream for a richer soup if you like. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
If the soup has cooled, or if taking out of the fridge, heat gently, but do not boil, to keep the cream from curdling.
Serve and Garnish: Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with freshly chopped parsley and freshly grated Parmesan cheese or goat cheese (or any cheese of your choice). Serve hot with crusty bread or a side salad for a complete meal.
Tips and Notes
- Be very careful to peel the woody ends of the asparagus or cut off the woody ends. To cut off the woody ends, take the two ends of the asparagus and bend until it snaps. It will snap where the asparagus turns woody. I prefer to peel my asparagus, but only since I got my new peeler. My old peeler just did not do the job.
- If you decide to cut off the woody ends, make sure you still have enough asparagus. You need close to one pound (500 grams), or about double the weight of the broccoli.
- For a lighter option, you can skip the cream and enjoy the soup as is.
- Feel free to adjust the thickness by adding more stock if the soup is too thick for your liking.
- Use fresh ingredients if possible. Otherwise you can use frozen asparagus and broccoli.
- Don’t overcook the broccoli and asparagus. Once they are tender, they are ready to be blended.
- Use freshly grated cheese. Store bought grated cheese contains anti-caking agents that changes the taste and consistency of the cheese. It really does not melt in the soup as well or taste as nice.
How to serve Asparagus and Broccoli Soup
- Serve with warm crusty bread for a café-style light lunch or dinner.
- Serve as an elegant entrée for dinner with guests.
Storage
- Make ahead and refrigerate for up to 3 days in advance
- You can freeze for up to 2 months.
Brocolli Asparagus Soup FAQ
Easy Cafe-Style Broccoli Asparagus Soup (with Vegan Option)
Equipment
- Big pot
- Vegetable peeler
- grater to grate the cheese if using
Ingredients
- 2 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
- 1 stalk of celery sliced
- 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound fresh asparagus trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces (note 1)
- 1 head of fresh broccoli (use broccoli stalks and florets)
- 1 medium onion diced
- 5-6 cups water
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 tsp lemon juice and 1 tsp lemon zest
- ¾ cup heavy cream heavy whipping cream or vegan cream (optional)
- Fresh parsley chopped, for garnish
- Freshly grated cheese or Goat cheese or cheddar cheese for topping (optional)
Instructions
Prepare the Vegetables:
- Peel the woody ends of the asparagus (or cut them off)and cut into pieces. Make sure you have about one pound of asparagus.
- Separate the broccoli into small florets, cut the broccoli stem into 1 inch pieces.
- Finely dice the onion and celery.
- Peel the potatoes and chop them up into smaller chunks.
Cook the Base Vegetables:
- In a large pot, heat oil and sauté onion and celery until soft (about 4-5 minutes).
- Add 4 cups water and add potatoes.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes or until the potatoes begin to soften.
- Add the broccoli florets pieces to the pot. Add another cup of water if needed to just cover the vegetables. Simmer for another 3 minutes.
- Add the asparagus pieces, lemon juice and lemon zest and cook over medium heat for another 3 minutes or until all vegetables are tender but still bright.
Blend the Soup:
- Using a stick blender, blend the soup until smooth. Or you can use a regular blender or food processor and purée.
- If you prefer, you can blend a bit less and have a chunky soup.
Season and Add Cream (Optional):
- The potatoes already give this broccoli asparagus soup a creamy consistency, but you can stir in the cream for a richer soup if you like.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- If the soup has cooled, or if taking out of the fridge, heat gently, but do not boil, to keep the cream from curdling.
Serve and Garnish:
- Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with freshly chopped parsley and freshly grated Parmesan cheese or goat cheese (or any cheese of your choice). Serve hot with crusty bread or a side salad for a complete meal.
Notes
- Be very careful to peel the woody ends of the asparagus or cut off the woody ends.
- Make sure you still have enough asparagus. You need close to one pound (500 grams), or about double the weight of the broccoli.
- For a lighter option, you can skip the cream and enjoy the soup as is.
- Feel free to adjust the thickness by adding more stock if the soup is too thick for your liking.
- Use fresh ingredients if possible. Otherwise, you can use frozen asparagus and broccoli.
- Don’t overcook the broccoli and asparagus. Once they are tender, they are ready to be blended.
- Use freshly grated cheese. Store bought grated cheese contains anti-caking agents that changes the taste and consistency of the cheese. It really does not melt in the soup as well or taste as nice.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Reheat gently – Make sure you don’t boil the cream of asparagus and broccoli soup, as it might curdle.
Nutrition
How did I tes this broccoli Asparagus Soup?
I make a lot of asparagus soup, especially when asparagus is in season and I often make asparagus soup with dill. I had a bunch of broccoli in my fridge that sort of needed to be eaten fairly quickly and I thought I would just add it to my asparagus soup.
The first time I added too little asparagus compared to the broccoli. The good news is that you can use all of the broccoli in this soup, not just the cute florets, but I figured out that I actually needed about half the weight of broccoli compared to the asparagus. Otherwise the broccoli taste overpowers the asparagus taste. By using about 1/3 broccoli and 2/3 asparagus, you get a really lovely flavor.
Also, I did not add any dill and chives, which I do use a lot of, and found that Italian parsely and freshly grated parmesan added a great touch. I have also tried it with Goat’s cheese which is also very yummy.
And this broccoli asparagus soup really is a very pretty soup.
