With hints of cayenne, thyme, and nutmeg, this creamy and flavorful broccoli beer cheese soup recipe is the ultimate easy comfort food dinner.

When your toes need warming up this winter, you should reach for this recipe for broccoli beer cheese soup. It’s so creamy and decadent that it’ll make the perfect dinner when you crave some cozy comfort food. Serve it in a bread bowl using our Dutch Oven Bread recipe or with a pretzel to make a full delicious meal the whole family will love.

Now, when I say this broccoli cheese soup is flavorful, I mean it. There are a lot of ingredients at play here and when they combine, it’s a tastebud explosion! So, what ingredients am I talking about? Well, you’ve got the three main players: broccoli, beer, and sharp cheddar cheese. Then you have milk, broth, sweet onion, carrot, nutmeg, bay leaves, thyme, and cayenne pepper.

While the ingredient list might be long, I promise it’s easy to whip up this soup. You just slowly add all the ingredients into one large pot, let it simmer and let all those flavors mingle, then puree the soup in a blender.

Recipe Ingredients

Extra virgin olive oil
Butter
Sweet onion, diced
Carrot, diced
All-purpose flour or almond flour
Whole milk
Low sodium veggie or chicken broth
Your favorite beer
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Bay leaves
Freshly grated nutmeg
Cayenne
Kosher salt and pepper
Broccoli florets (chopped or in a food processor)
Fresh thyme leaves

Helpful Kitchen Tools

Large Pot
Blender (Splurge)
Blender (Budget Friendly)

Heat the olive oil and butter in a large pot over medium heat.

Add the onion and carrot and cook for about 10 minutes.

Add in the flour and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Then gradually add in the milk and whisk until smooth.

Then it’s time to add the broth.

The beer.

The finely chopped broccoli florets.

Then add the bay leaves, nutmeg, cayenne, and a large pinch each of salt and pepper if desired.

Bring to a simmer. Turn down to medium heat and cook uncovered until the broccoli is tender. Usually about 20 minutes.

Remove the soup from the stove. Remove the bay leaves and puree the broccoli cheese soup in a blender.

Once pureed, put the soup back on the stovetop over low heat.

Stir in the cheese until melted and creamy.

Add the thyme and cook another 2-3 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings just the way you like them.

Serve into bowls and top with a little extra cheddar and fresh thyme. YUM!

If you want to go that extra mile, serve your broccoli beer cheese soup in a hollowed-out bread bowl.

Or serve your cheese soup with softly baked pretzels for dipping. Enjoy!

Storage

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat on the stovetop.
Freeze soup leftovers without toppings for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight before reheating on the stovetop.

Recipe Notes

I’ve included a couple of serving suggestions above, but you could also serve a bowl of soup with breadsticks, crusty slices of bread, or crackers.
Don’t be afraid to mix up the cheese in this soup. As long as there are 4 cups, you can do 2 cups of sharp cheddar cheese and 2 cups of white cheddar cheese, for example.
For added spice, add 1 large seeded and chopped jalapeno when you cook the carrot and onion.
When you add the cheese at the end of the recipe, you can also add some crumbled bits of crispy bacon as well.
Instead of cheese, top your soup with more crumbled bacon, chopped green onion, sour cream and croutons, or soft pretzel bites. Popcorn is also the traditional topping for beer cheddar soup!
If you want more vegetables in your soup, add 5 sticks of diced celery when you add the carrot and onion.

Here are more delicious broccoli and cheese dishes:

Homestyle Broccoli Cheese Cornbread

Broccoli Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breast

Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Rice Casserole

Broccoli with Cheese Sauce

Chicken Broccoli Skillet with Pimento Cheese Sauce