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Golden Cauliflower Soup

It’s not exactly soup weather in Austin yet. The temperature is still annoyingly hovering in the high 80s, and the stack of (super cute) sweaters I bought a few weeks ago sits on my shelf, mocking me and the life choices that brought me to the land of perpetual flip flops and the (questionable) glory of swimming holes.

But that doesn’t mean that I can’t eat soup.

In fact, I’m eating my soup so defiantly, I’m eating it for breakfast. Soup in the a.m. is an easy, cheater way to get extra vegetables into my belly, and it’s a good stand-in for coffee or tea: it’s comforting, warm, cozy, and bonus! it gets eaten instead of drunk. (‘Cause being drunk that early in the morning would be a bad way to start the day.)

With this soup, cauliflower proves once again that it is the ultimate magical vegetable. This puréed soup is creamy, smooth, and fluffy — like pillows and happy clouds and Smudge. It’s great topped with herbs (dried or fresh chives, Penzeys Fox Point Seasoning, freshly chopped parsley), spices (cinnamon and nutmeg, Ras el Hanout, Penzeys Tsardust Memories), or luscious fat (a little melted ghee or extra-virgin olive oil, finely chopped nuts or pine nuts). Slurp!

Golden Cauliflower Soup

Serves 4-6 | Prep 10 min | Cook 60 min

Ingredients:
1 large head cauliflower (about 3 pounds)
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 medium onion, diced (about 1 cup)
2 large carrots, diced (about 2 cups)
2 cloves garlic, smashed
2 cups beef broth
1 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup coconut milk

Directions:

1. Wash and core the cauliflower, then coarsely chop. Set aside.

2. Heat a large, deep pot over medium-high heat, then add the coconut oil. When the oil is melted, add onions, carrots, and garlic. Stir with a wooden spoon and cook until they’re soft and golden, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped cauliflower and cook until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the broth and water, then bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook, covered, until the vegetables are very tender, about 45 minutes.

4. Working in batches, carefully transfer the cauliflower and some of the broth to a blender or food processor. Cover the top with a dish towel to protect yourself from splatters, and purée the cauliflower until smooth, adding more broth as necessary.

5. Pour the purée back into the soup pot, then add the salt, pepper, and coconut milk. Stir to combine and cook over medium until heated through. Serve immediately with garnishes, or store covered in the refrigerator. To reheat, warm the soup gently over medium-low heat until bubbly.

NOTE:
I tried adding herbs and spices during cooking, but got the best results when I kept the soup plain and added seasonings at the end as garnishes as recommended above. I also experimented with chicken broth, beef broth, water, and different combos of all three for the base of this soup; the hands-down winner was beef broth. The versions made with chicken broth (and celery) ended up tasting too much like gravy. (If you’re looking for a healthy gravy you can ladle over chicken or turkey, cut this recipe in half, add a stalk of celery with the carrot/onion and use all chicken broth for the liquid.)

More Soups

Gingery Pork & Bok Choy Soup
10-Minute Pizza Soup

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57 Responses to “Golden Cauliflower Soup”

  1. Lydia says:

    Yay! This is going in my AIP-okay recipe pile come January. Thank you!

  2. LMoll says:

    Is this Whole30 compliant? It looks like it, and looks delicious, so I hope it is!

    • Lauren says:

      It’s definitely Whole 30 compliant! Mel is doing the Whole 30 right now and all of those ingredients are allowed on the Whole 30.

      • Mel says:

        Thanks, Lauren!

        LMoll, almost all of my recipes are Whole30 compliant, and when they’re not, I clearly explain in the recipe that they’re “treats” or offer ingredient substitutions to make them Whole30 complian.

  3. kelly alice. says:

    these days i’m less interested in if something is “whole30 compliant” and more interested in the macronutrients. any thoughts about publishing that kind of info with your recipes?

    • Mel says:

      I don’t put my recipes through nutrition calculators because even though I track macronutrients, I don’t do it for individual recipes.

      This is almost ALL vegetables, so I figure a cup of soup is roughly equivalent to a cup of cauliflower. There’s 1/2 cup of coconut milk, so if you divided the soup into, say, 6 servings, that would be 1/6 of a 1/2 cup of coconut milk, which is pretty minimal fat… roughly 4 grams of fat.

      Anyway. That’s the scoop on this soup, but no, I won’t be included nutrition info with recipes.

  4. Anita says:

    You mentioned that you were working on this recipe a while back and I’ve been anxiously awaiting it’s appearance…and here it is on my birthday! Thanks!! :-)

  5. barb says:

    Cauliflower soup in virtually any form is amazing. I make one with home made chicken stock (bone broth) & bacon. I puree most of it but leave a few smallish chunks. It’s a dead ringer, flavor wise, for my old childhood favorite campbells bean & bacon soup. (except without all the toxic gick)
    Eriko

    • debi says:

      Hey Barb-
      Any chance you would post your new and improved “Bean & Bacon” soup recipe?
      That’s my all-time FAVORITE Campbell’s soup!!
      I’d love to have a Paleo version!
      Thank you!
      debi :)

  6. Okay I totally made something just like this on accident a few months ago. Divine.

  7. Laurie says:

    Perfect! No dairy and it looks so wonderfully creamy and delicious. Will definitely try this!

  8. Kathy says:

    A question about cauliflower…..

    How do I avoid the sweet taste that I get whenever I use it? Is it a cooking method thing? Cooked too long? Not long enough? I’ve used frozen florets and fresh cauliflower – same result.

    I really want to love all things cauliflower, especially the basics like smashed cauliflower, cauli-rice and now this lovely soup, but the sweetness just doesn’t set right with me.

    • Mel says:

      Cauliflower is naturally pretty sweet — that’s why most people like it ;-)

      You might try sticking to recipes that use “darker” spices with some heat, like chili powder, for example. Roasting and caramelizing the cauliflower — like this recipe and my cocoa-toasted cauliflower in Well Fed — actually heighten the sweetness, so less cooking might work better for you.

    • Julie says:

      Thanks for the recipe! I now know what I am making with the head of cauliflower in the fridge. I recently got your new book and I have to say great recipes, great photo’s and great layout. I’ve really enjoyed reading it and making mayo, chocolate chili, creamy cucumber salad and more. I look forward to your next book!

  9. Therese says:

    Perfect timing!! The cold and rain continues here in the SF Bay Area and this soup looks warm and comforting as well as easy. Another Well Fed winner.

  10. AKM says:

    YAY! I can’t wait to make this. Thanks, nice lady!

  11. Kristen says:

    Thank you for this delicious recipe! I just whipped it up while prepping my food for the week. I had a bunch of broccoli stems so I threw them in for some extra veggie goodness and it is delicious :) Your cookbook is becoming my paleo bff!

  12. Alisha says:

    Sweet! I’ll be trying a cheater version of this tonight with frozen cauliflower

  13. Liz says:

    Yay! I’ve got cauliflower in the fridge I need to use!!

    Thank you for all your wonderful recipes!!

  14. Teri Pittman says:

    In the interest of giving back, I actually made butternut squash soup today! I used chicken broth, the squash and a little coconut milk. I added about a tablespoon of sunbutter and seasoned with curry powder. It really turned out nice. It’s cool and wet here, so this will be the next soup I make!

  15. Cathy M says:

    Yay! Snow on the ground here in Denver, and a new, yummy soup recipe to make for dinner! Sounds like fate…

  16. Nae says:

    Wow I just made this soup and I’m in love!!! So comforting :)

  17. Claire Clark says:

    Looks lovely though as we are vegetarian will be using veg stock.. Will let you know..

    Snow on the ground here in NE Scotland too..

  18. 1. You crack me up
    2. Enjoy the weather, it’s snowing here -.-
    3. I always eat dinner for breakfast so this is right up my alley!

  19. Colleen says:

    Ran across this luscious little number this morning. I was already planning on making Diane Sanfilippo’s Quick & Easy Salmon Cakes for brunch. What an amazing pairing! Topped the soup with Penzey’s Tsar Dust, red hawaiian sea salt and fresh parsley. I swear my hubby and I were making little piggy noises while we were eating!

  20. Rebekah says:

    Love this! I don’t usually like creamed soups, but this one was delicious…and I couldn’t stop eating it! Thank you :) .

  21. Cheryl Sams says:

    This is a delightful soup! Just made a big batch to help get me through Hurricane Sandy… Sure beats spagettios!

    Thanks for all your recipes!

  22. Melanie says:

    This recipe is fantastic!! When I made the soup I decided I wanted it to have a little bit of heat on it, since the flavors are very warm. It was great with a heaping teaspoon of red pepper flakes. I also add a bay leaf to the vegetable mix when it was simmering to give it more depth of flavor.

    It makes such a great base to add anything to it. I’ve added sausage & herbs, chicken & avocado… the possibilities are endless.

    Thank you so much for this recipe!

  23. Laura says:

    I just made this and I’m obsessed already. Cream of Cauliflower soup from a restaurant near my house was my favorite growing up, but this was much better!

    • Mel says:

      Hooray! That’s such an awesome compliment… glad you like it! I have another pureed soup coming next week, and I’m torn between which one is the best. Glad I get to eat both!

  24. Jacqui says:

    Hey Mel
    Ever try an immersion/stick blender? I got one last Christmas and I swear it is amazing. I still have faint black bean soup specks (pre-paleo days!) on my ceiling from using a regular blender and NOT cooling the mixture before whirling it. Cuisinart’s stick is so easy to use and clean.
    Jacqui

    • Mel says:

      I haven’t tried one because I just really don’t want to add another appliance to my kitchen. My blender is such a workhorse, and I love it. But between soup and mayo, the argument is pretty strong for an immersion/stick blender. I just can’t with any more kitchen clutter ;-)

  25. [...] golden cauliflower soup is absolutely yummy! I made mine with vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian. Comments: 0 Posted [...]

  26. [...] article in constant digital contact; we feel alone together recipe golden cauliflower soup [...]

  27. sderric says:

    I made this over the weekend and it was absolutely delicious! Thank you!

    Keep the soup recipes coming!

  28. Julie says:

    I made this last week and really liked it. I had enough left over for two smallish bowls so I wanted to add something to make a little more substantial lunch/dinner. I added some diced ham and let me tell you, that was awesome! The sweet cauliflower with the salty ham was just perfect!

  29. Gianna says:

    This soup was delicious! I made it for company and they ate every drop. I just started the paleo diet recently and am loving it (although I’m a vegetarian, but one who eats eggs and fish)because of recipes like this one. The sunshine sauce is AMAZING, as is the “world’s best stir fry sauce.” Your Well- Fed cookbook is the only one on my kitchen counter right now; I’m having a ball trying the recipes, and haven’t found anything we haven’t loved yet. Thanks!

    • Mel says:

      Glad you liked the soup! Congrats on making the switch to paleo — I love when vegetarians find ways to make it work. So great to get *some* animal protein and kick the grains. YAY!

      Thanks for taking Well Fed into your kitchen. Glad to be there!

  30. [...] Golden Cauliflower Soup: It’s epic. Try it. [...]

  31. [...] Golden Cauliflower Soup [...]

  32. Claudia says:

    Just made this soup today in preparation for the cold front. This soup is delicious!!!! Love your recipes. Thanks so much for posting.

  33. Kel says:

    I just made this and as expected, it was delicious!

  34. Emily says:

    I just made this to eat with my breakfast, and it is DELICIOUS! I was dubious as I am not always a creamed soup kinda gal, but this soup may make me a convert. YUM with Tsardust Memories!

    • Mel says:

      So glad you like it! I’ve never been a soup person either, but man! both this and the Silky Gingered Zucchini Soup are in my regular rotation now. Who knew eating soup for breakfast was the trick?!

  35. Rebecca says:

    I raced the snow storm to the store for some compliant beef broth because I was out of homemade. This soup was delicious! I have mucho leftovers and I feel prepared for the end of the world. LOL

  36. [...] Golden Cauliflower Soup – Cauliflower is really versatile, try it in this soup, or search for other healthy recipes. [...]

  37. [...] this site.  While playing around on it, I stumbled across this cauliflower soup on a blog called The Clothes Make the Girl.   This dish is perfect for the overcast weather we have had lately.  It’s easy to make and [...]

  38. Amy R says:

    I just made this recipe and it is so delicious! I am sick as a dog today and I this soup was just what I needed. Thanks, Mel, for what you do and for sharing your recipes with the world. I for one am very grateful. :)

  39. Rebecca says:

    Just wanted to say, this soup is just amazing. Your book has turned me onto the paleo way of living and I am truly enjoying cooking. Thank you.

  40. Nicole says:

    I made the zucchini soup and loved it! Do I have to use canned coconut milk? Would the kind in the carton work ok?

    • Mel says:

      You should always only use the canned coconut milk — the kind in the carton often includes sweeteners and other weirdo ingredients. For canned, the only added ingredient should be guar gum, and sometimes you can find it without, and that’s even better. Enjoy!

  41. Brooke says:

    Just made the soup and it is fantastic. I was wondering if I could freeze it in small batches.( I’m never sure what is okay to freeze.)
    Thanks!

  42. Jennifer says:

    This was seriously easy and delicious and will be great for breakfast! Thank you so much for tinkering with and perfecting all of your recipes before posting them. It’s great being able to go to your site and know that whatever recipe you post will be a winner – exactly as is. I am loving all the soups lately.

    • Mel says:

      I’m glad you liked it — and thank you for the thoughtful compliment! I HATE when I try a recipe and it doesn’t work, so I’m a stickler for testing at least a few times before I share.

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