Roasted Cauliflower Soup

I picked up a gorgeous cauliflower the other day at the Greengrocers, for only 98p! It was huge and so fresh, with really tight buds and a beautiful creamy white colour. I could hardly wait to get it home and do something with it.

I thought about a cauliflower cheese, which is a real favourite of ours. Then I thought perhaps a cauliflower curry, or gratin. I haved a whole host of Cauliflower recipes here, that I could have chosen from, each of them quite delicious in their own way . . . and then the weather turned quite cold and rainy.



It felt as if winter had returned and so I decided to make a soup.

A delicious Roasted Cauliflower Soup! Rich and velvety!



The cauliflower gets almost sweet after roasting it in the oven . . . as do the onion and garlic. (DO be careful not to let it overbrown, as that will have exactly the opposite effect and it will turn bitter!)



After roasting, you then simmer it all in a pot of vegetable stock along with some potato. Once the whole pot of vegetables is meltingly tender you then blitz it until smooth and velvety with a stick blender.

Finally you whisk in some cream and voila!! With a bit of seasoning your soup is done and oh so creamily delicious!!



I garnished ours with a bit grated cheddar and some minced chives, just for some colour.

Altogether it was quite, quite good, if I don't say so myself!



*Roasted Cauliflower Soup*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

A deliciously rich and velvety smooth soup.

1 medium cauliflower, trimmed and broken into florets
olive oil
1 large brown onion, peeled and cut into wedges
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
2 medium floury potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
500ml vegetable stock (2 cups)
500ml of water (2 cups)
3 to 4 TBS of cream
sea salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper to taste

To garnish:
grated cheddar cheese (optional)
finely chopped chives (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Have ready a large baking try with a rim.

Place the cauliflower florets onto the baking tray. Drizzle with some olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Tear off a square of alumimium foil. Place the onion wedges and peeled garlic in the middle of the foil. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and then draw the edges of the foil up to cover and seal tightly closed. Place on the baking tray with the cauliflower.

Roast for about 30 to 45 minutes, until the cauliflower is soft. It is ok if it is a little bit browned, but don't let it brown too much as it will turn bitter.

Move the roasted cauliflower, onion and garlic to a large saucepan. Add the potatoes, stock and water. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer and simmer for another 20 to 30 minutes until all the vegetables are completely softened. Blitz until smooth with a stick blender, adding more stock if need be to give you the right consistency. Add the cream and season to taste with some salt, black and cayenne pepper.

Ladle into heated soup bowls and garnish with cheddar and chives if you wish.