To start, slice some bacon into small pieces.

Saute the bacon in a large, deep skillet until nicely browned. Remove with a slotted spoon. Reserve 2 Tbls of bacon drippings and remove the rest.

Dice up the onion and shallot. I ended up with about 1 cup total.

Add the butter to the bacon drippings and let it melt. Add in the onion and shallot.

Cook for several minutes until translucent.

Add the flour and combine well. Let this cook for a minute or two to cook out the raw flour taste.

Add in the chopped broccoli and remaining ingredients except for the cheese.

Let the soup come to a simmer and then cover with a lid.

The soup needs to simmer for about 25-30 minutes - just until the broccoli is nice and tender.

Go ahead and turn the heat off. Now comes some more delicious flavor - the CHEESE! Depending on how ooey-gooey you like your soup to be you can add in more. I'd suggest starting with 2 cups and then adding in 1/2 cup increments till you reach your desired cheesiness. Mix the cheese in until it's melted into the soup.

If you like your soup chunky, you're done! If you like a more creamy, consistent texture, use an immersion blender of a blender to get your desired consistency. I used my blender and did it in two batches.