Cream of Spinach Soup: A From-Scratch Recipe

Cream of spinach soup is made by softening onion, simmering it with potato and broth, wilting in fresh spinach, blending until smooth and finishing with cream. The potato thickens the soup so you don’t need a flour roux, and adding the spinach late keeps the color bright.

Below is the recipe with weights and cup measures, then how to adjust thickness, vary the soup, and store and reheat it.

Ingredients

Onion and garlic build a mild savory base. A starchy or all-purpose potato gives the soup body when blended. Peel it so the soup stays green and smooth.

Use a broth you like to drink, since there is little else to hide behind. Taste it first, because commercial broths vary in salt.

Mature flat-leaf spinach and baby spinach both work. Rinse well and drain. Cream gives a silky finish and goes in at the end. Lemon juice brightens the soup, and nutmeg is a classic pairing with spinach in cream sauces.

Frozen spinach is a possible shortcut, but it is dense and holds water. Thaw it and squeeze it before use, add less than the weight of fresh, then taste and adjust.

Why these ingredients work

A blended soup needs something to hold it together. Spinach has plenty of flavor but little starch, and on its own it would give a thin, watery purée. Potato releases starch as it cooks and blends into a smooth, creamy base without added flour.

Long simmering turns the soup an army green, so wilt the spinach only until it collapses and blend right away. Add the cream after blending and don’t boil it hard, since gentle heat keeps the texture smooth.

Step-by-step method

1. Melt the butter over medium heat and cook the onion with a pinch of salt until soft and translucent. Don’t let it brown, or the soup will taste and look darker.
2. Add the garlic and stir for about half a minute, until fragrant.
3. Add the potato and broth and simmer until the potato is very soft. A piece should crush easily against the side of the pot.
4. Stir in the spinach by the handful. It looks like too much at first but collapses quickly. Take the pot off the heat as soon as the leaves have wilted.
5. Purée until smooth. With a countertop blender, work in batches, fill the jar no more than halfway and vent the lid, since hot liquid expands.
6. Stir in the cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add lemon juice a few drops at a time and taste after each.

Adjusting the thickness

Cream soups tighten as they cool and sit, so judge thickness when the soup is hot.

• Too thick: thin with hot broth or water a few tablespoons at a time. Reheat gently and taste for salt.
• Too thin: simmer uncovered a few minutes to reduce, or blend in a few more pieces of cooked potato. Add cream last.
• Slightly grainy: blend longer. A countertop blender gives a smoother result than an immersion blender, and you can strain the soup through a fine sieve for a very silky texture.

Variations

These are options, not tested results.

• For a dairy-free soup, use olive oil in place of butter and a dairy-free cream alternative, or blend in a few extra pieces of potato for body.
• For a lighter soup, use whole milk or half-and-half in place of cream. It will be thinner.
• Blend in a handful of parsley or dill at the end of cooking.
• Top with a spoon of yogurt, croutons or toasted seeds for texture.

If you want another soup that starts from pantry ingredients, try this tomato bread soup.

Storage and reheating

Refrigerate leftover soup within 2 hours of cooking (1 hour if the temperature is above 90°F). To cool it quickly, divide a big pot into smaller, shallow containers, then cover them. USDA says leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days, or frozen for 3 to 4 months. Follow the label on any packaged ingredient you used, such as broth or cream.

When you reheat, USDA advises bringing soups to a rolling boil and making sure they reach 165°F as measured with a food thermometer. Cover the pot, stir often, and keep the heat moderate so the cream does not scorch. Thin with a little broth or water if it has thickened in the refrigerator. Texture and color are not safety tests, so a soup that looks fine is not necessarily safe.

Soups with cream can separate a little after freezing and thawing. If you plan to freeze a batch, a common approach is to freeze the soup before adding the cream and stir the cream in after reheating. See this guide on how to freeze soup in portions for containers, headspace and labeling.