I’m looking forward to a cooler week ahead, so made roasted cauliflower soup today to welcome fall. I’ve been intrigued by a recipe I’ve heard a lot about on several cooking podcasts: roasting a whole cauliflower head. I experimented with roasted cauliflower earlier this season, which led to a cauliflower and pasta dish (you can find it here). Roasting gives cauliflower a nutty flavor, so I figured a whole roasted head would be tasty, especially if it was blended into soup.
Soup and salad are one of my favorite combinations for lunch at my desk. Soup is so comforting and a salad on the side makes it feel like a complete meal. I enjoy cooler weather for that reason alone – it’s soup making time.
The recipe I used for the roasted cauliflower head came from Bon Appetit. It calls for poaching the cauliflower first, which takes a little extra time, but it is well worth it. The cauliflower lends itself to a creamy roasted cauliflower soup and requires so few ingredients – it’s simplicity itself. Since I often fix lunch for several days in advance, any recipe that freezes well makes me happy, and this freezes exceptionally well.
That, and a fully roasted head of cauliflower is so, so very pretty!
Of course, so is the finished soup.
Roasted Cauliflower Soup
Serves 4
1 head of cauliflower, roasted using this recipe
1 cup reserved poaching liquid from poaching the cauliflower
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 cup half and half
1 teaspoon salt
After poaching and roasting the cauliflower, combine the roasted cauliflower, poaching liquid, stock, half and half, and salt in a large saucepan. Use an immersion blender or regular blender to blend until smooth. Adjust salt to taste. Enjoy!
