Chicken and leek barley soup
A warm chicken soup with soft leeks, carrots and pearl barley.
About 55 min · 405 kcal · 36 g protein per serving
Broccoli and white bean soup with cheddar
Broccoli and beans blended into a comforting cheddar soup.
By The foodose editorial team. Nutrition calculated from USDA FoodData Central. Checked on paper on 12 September 2026; not yet cooked in a test kitchen or photographed, so the times and yield are estimates. How we develop our recipes
What still needs a real kitchen
- Confirm the stalks are tender in 8 minutes
- Photograph the finished bowls
- Time
- About 35 min
- estimated
- Serves
- 2
- see below
- Energy
- 365 kcal
- per serving
- Protein
- 22 g
- per serving
Ingredients for 2 servings
Check off ingredients as you go.
Contains milk. Check the labels on packaged ingredients:
- vegetable stock. Vegetable stock often contains celery, and some contain milk or gluten; check the label, especially if you need it vegan.
- cheddar. Some cheddar is made with animal rennet; check the label if you are vegetarian.
Cooking steps
Warm the oil in a large pan and cook the onion for 5 minutes.
Add the broccoli stalks, the beans and the stock and simmer for 8 minutes. The stalks take longer than the florets, which is why they go in first.
Add the florets and cook for 5 minutes more, until tender.
Blend until smooth, filling the blender no more than half full, then return the soup to the pan.
Stir in the milk and the cheddar over low heat until the cheese has melted. Do not let it boil, or the cheese will turn stringy.
The useful detail
Add florets later than stalks for more even cooking. Cooked together, the florets are grey and sulphurous by the time the stalks give way.
Make it work for you
One serving is A large bowl, half the pan. You can switch to a smaller portion in the ingredients above; it is three quarters of this, and it contains correspondingly less energy and protein. It is an option, not a goal.
A vegetarian hard cheese
Sharper, and it melts less smoothly; stir it in off the heat.
Per serving: about 5 kcal less, about 3 g more protein, about 2 g less fat.
Cauliflower instead of broccoli
Paler and milder, and it blends smoother.
Per serving: about 15 kcal less, about 1 g less protein, about the same fat.
Unsweetened soya milk
No real difference once blended.
Per serving: about 5 kcal less, about the same protein, about the same fat.
Allergens: Adds soya. The cheddar still contains milk.
Estimated nutrition
Per standard serving, calculated from the ingredients above. Nutrition changes with substitutions, brands and how much oil stays in the pan.
A blended vegetable soup with body from beans rather than cream. The cheddar is 50 g between two, weighed because it carries most of the fat and salt.
| Energy | 365 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 22 g |
| Fat | 13 g |
| of which saturates | 6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 45 g |
| of which sugars | 9 g |
| Fibre | 10 g |
| Sodium | 1,530 mg |
Show calculation notes
Each ingredient’s weight is multiplied by its USDA FoodData Central values per 100 g. The whole recipe is added up and divided by 2. Raw weights are used for meat, fish and vegetables; beans and lentils are drained weights. All of the oil is counted as eaten. Added salt is not included; sodium from stock, bread, cheese and tinned food is.
| Ingredient | Weight used | Source | Energy | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| olive oil | 4.5 g | FDC 171413Oil, olive, salad or cooking | 40 kcal | 0.0 g |
| onion | 60 g | FDC 170000Onions, raw | 24 kcal | 0.7 g |
| broccoli | 300 g | FDC 170379Broccoli, raw | 102 kcal | 8.5 g |
| white beans | 250 g | FDC 175204Beans, white, mature seeds, canned | 285 kcal | 18.1 g |
| vegetable stock | 590 g | FDC 171583Soup, vegetable broth, ready to serve | 29 kcal | 1.4 g |
| milk | 105 g | FDC 171267Milk, reduced fat, fluid, 2% milkfat, with added vitamin A and vitamin D | 52 kcal | 3.4 g |
| cheddar | 50 g | FDC 173414Cheese, cheddar (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program) | 202 kcal | 11.4 g |
| Whole recipe | Divided by 2 | 734 kcal | 43.5 g |
Per serving the energy is rounded to the nearest 5 kcal, grams to the nearest whole gram and sodium to the nearest 10 mg. Calculation method 1.0, September 2026. How the calculation works.
Storage and reheating
- In the fridge
- Cool it quickly, cover and refrigerate within 2 hours. The FDA chart gives soups and stews 3 to 4 days. Reheat gently; the cheese separates at a boil.
- In the freezer
- The same chart gives soups and stews 2 to 3 months in the freezer for best quality.
- Reheating
- Reheat until it reaches 74°C / 165°F, steaming hot throughout, stirring so it heats evenly.
Checked against US Food and Drug Administration, Refrigerator and Freezer Storage Chart, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, Leftovers and Food Safety, FoodSafety.gov, Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures and FoodSafety.gov, Cold Food Storage Chart. UK guidance from the Food Standards Agency is shorter, at two days for most leftovers.
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