Cream of Cauliflower Soup

Cream of cauliflower soup with parsley

Yun Han Xu/Getty Images 

Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Total: 30 mins
Servings: 4 servings

This quick cream of cauliflower soup recipe uses onions and cauliflower to make a smooth, creamy soup from pureed vegetables to which you then add heavy cream for a rich, luxurious soup. Serve it with crusty bread for a light dinner or serve small portions for a decadent opening to a bigger meal.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium onion

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste

  • 2 cloves garlic

  • 1 head cauliflower

  • 4 cups chicken broth, or vegetable broth

  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

  • 1 cup heavy cream

  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, or chives, optional

Steps to Make It

  1. Peel and roughly chop the onion. In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally and adjusting the heat so the onions are cooking but not browning, until the onions look starchy and a bit creamy, about 5 minutes.

  2. While the onions cook, peel and chop the garlic. Add the garlic to the pot and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

  3. Meanwhile, roughly chop the cauliflower or simply pull it apart into florets. Many people will be tempted to discard the solid white core, but it has plenty of flavor, so chop it up and add it in with the florets. Add the cauliflower to the pot, stir to combine, cover and cook 3 minutes.

  4. Add the broth, bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer. Cook until the cauliflower is very tender, about 10 minutes.

  5. Purée the soup with a hand-held immersion blender. Or whirl in a blender or food processor until smooth (place a kitchen towel over the blender to prevent potential burns); depending on how big your blender is, you may need to work in batches. However you puree the soup, whirl it for a bit longer than you think necessary to achieve the smoothest possible soup.

  6. Stir in the pepper and nutmeg. Taste and add more salt, pepper, and/or nutmeg to your liking. (Note: At this point the soup may be cooled, covered, and frozen for up to four months.)

  7. Stir in the cream and cook over medium-low heat until the soup is nice and hot. Serve the soup hot, with a sprinkle of parsley or chives as a garnish, if you like.

Use Caution When Blending Hot Ingredients

Steam expands quickly in a blender, and can cause ingredients to splatter everywhere or cause burns. To prevent this, fill the blender only one-third of the way up, vent the top, and cover with a folded kitchen towel while blending.

Tip

  • Why white pepper? To avoid black specks in the creamy white soup. Knowing that's the reason, if you don't mind a few specks, go ahead and use black pepper if you like!

Recipe Variations

  • For something a little less rich, try Pureed Cauliflower Soup.
  • Add a tablespoon of curry and some cayenne pepper for a spicy curried cauliflower soup.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
315 Calories
28g Fat
12g Carbs
6g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 315
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 28g 37%
Saturated Fat 18g 88%
Cholesterol 87mg 29%
Sodium 1272mg 55%
Total Carbohydrate 12g 4%
Dietary Fiber 4g 13%
Total Sugars 7g
Protein 6g
Vitamin C 64mg 321%
Calcium 82mg 6%
Iron 1mg 5%
Potassium 348mg 7%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)