1. Fill your DUROTHERM® Hold and Serve, 3/4 of the way with water and a few big pinches of salt, bring to a boil. Add the broccoli and blanch for 2 to 3 minutes until it is bright green and fork tender, but still slightly crispy.

2. Drain and transfer the broccoli from the Durotherm Hold and Serve to a bowl filled with ice water to stop the cooking process. Once cooled set aside about 1 cup of the florets for  garnish.

3. Wipe out the Durotherm Hold and Serve, place over medium heat, and melt the butter. Once melted, add the onions, garlic, and shredded carrot. Cook until veggies soften, 4 to 5 minutes, stirring regularly.

4. Stir in the gluten free all-purpose flour. Cook for 1 minute to coat the vegetables, and then start to slowly pour in the vegetable stock. Stir constantly as you pour in the stock to avoid lumps. Once all of the stock is added, bring the soup up to a low simmer. Add the milk, half and half, and the remaining blanched broccoli. Place the lid on the Durotherm Hold and Serve and simmer for about 10 minutes over low heat.

5. Blend the soup with an immersion blender just until all of the big chunks are broken down but the soup still has lots of texture.

6 Add the grated cheese, salt, and pepper to the pureed soup and stir over low heat until the cheese has melted. Taste soup and season with additional salt and pepper to your liking.

7. Place the DUROTHERM® Hold and Serve on its heat retaining base with the lid on and the soup will stay nice and warm for up to 2 hours.

8. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with reserved broccoli florets, Aleppo pepper flakes if using, and flaky sea salt.