Start by heating the olive oil in your large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for about 5 minutes until it becomes soft and translucent. This brings out the natural sweetness of the onion and adds a depth of flavor to the soup.

Add the minced garlic and sauté for another minute. The smell is heavenly, isn’t it?

Next, add the diced russet potatoes and broccoli florets to the pot. Stir everything together so the veggies are well-coated in the olive oil. You can also chop up some of the broccoli stems into smaller pieces to add extra texture and nutrients to the soup. Let everything cook for 5 minutes or so, just to get the flavors melding together.

Now, it's time to pour in the veggie broth (or veggie stock) and both the almond milk and coconut milk. These liquids will form the base of your creamy soup. Stir everything to combine.

Bring the soup to a simmer over medium-low heat. Let it cook for about 15-20 minutes until the potatoes and broccoli are tender. The goal here is to let the vegetables soften and infuse the liquid with all those fresh flavors.

While your soup is simmering, you can prepare the cashew cream to make the soup extra creamy. To do this, drain and rinse the soaked raw cashews and blend them with ½ cup of water in your high-powered blender until smooth. This will create a rich, velvety base that’s perfect for adding a creamy texture to the soup.

Once the veggies are tender, it’s time to blend the soup to achieve that creamy consistency. You can use an immersion blender directly in the pot or transfer the soup in batches to your high-powered blender (be careful not to burn yourself with hot soup!).

Blend until the soup is smooth and creamy, with a few chunks of broccoli left for texture—unless you prefer a completely smooth soup, in which case, blend away!

Now, it’s time to bring the soup to life with some flavor. Add the nutritional yeast, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. The nutritional yeast is a game-changer here—it adds that cheesy flavor that’s the hallmark of a classic broccoli cheddar soup. Stir well, taste, and adjust the seasonings as needed.

If you want to make the soup even cheesier, now’s the time to add the vegan cheddar shreds. Stir them in and let the cheese melt into the soup, giving it that ultra-creamy, cheesy broccoli soup vibe.