This soup is delicious but I have never particularly enjoyed the sight of a green soup—hence the attempt to draw your eye to the croutons and my cute napkin. I had a hankering for a soup like this but every recipe I looked at involved something I didn’t want; for example, a roux with lots of flour (which IMHO gives it that pseudo-homemade taste that you find in Panera soups or the like), lots of heavy cream, carrots (why?!!!). I decided to use one small potato as a thickener and only a small amount of cream rather than the 2 cups called for in several recipes I saw. If I’m going to consume 2 cups of cream (and believe me, I’m not unwilling), it’s certainly not going to be with broccoli!
The croutons, in addition to being aesthetically pleasing, are pure deliciousness; I like to make my own from stale baguettes or bread that no one wants to eat anymore. There’s not really a recipe- I cut the stale bread into cubes and sauté them in a decent amount of EVOO, sprinkling with salt and garlic powder. When they are relatively browned and crisp, I transfer to a slow oven for about 1 hour (250º) or until nicely crisped. This is such a great way to cut down on kitchen waste and the result is much more delicious than anything from the supermarket.
