This is a great soup for a chilly afternoon in the northern hemisphere as we round the bend toward the Autumnal Equinox. We steam and roast cauliflower then whip it into a paste in a food processor. Cauliflower takes on a sort of nutty flavor when roasted but you can skip the roasting if feels too much like work.
We use microwave steam-in-bag cauliflower when it’s on sale (99 cents per 12 ounce package) as it shortens the cooking time but you can use fresh cauliflower if it is cheaper – though you will have to steam it longer. Also, though we almost always prefer fresh garlic over the jarred, in this recipe the chopped garlic from a jar renders a more garlicky finish than one would be able to get from fresh garlic.
If you have some shelled pistachios lying around, chop em up as a garnish for folks to sprinkle over their soup. It bumps up the nuttiness and adds a little crunch. Of course I’m throwing bacon bits onto mine… just sayin.
Need This
3 – 12 ounce microwave steam-in-bag frozen cauliflower or 1 large head of fresh
2 – 12 ounce packages of frozen yellow corn.
2 celery ribs – chopped
A large handful of shredded carrots
1 tablespoon of chopped garlic – preferably jarred
1 large (49.5 ounce) can of chicken broth
1 cup of whole milk
Olive oil
2 tablespoons of butter
Stubbs liquid smoke – Hickory
1 bay leaf
Salt
Cayenne pepper
Bacon bits or chopped pistachios for toppings
Do This
Steam the cauliflower as per package instructions (or steam a fresh head until soft when pierced with a knife).
Heat your oven to 450 degrees F.
Brush a generous amount of olive oil onto a baking pan. Spread the cauliflower florets onto the oiled pan (use two pans if one pan is too overcrowded) and stick it in the hot oven.
Roast the cauliflower in the oven until you see it starting to brown.
Remove the cauliflower from the oven and dump it into a food processor. Add the one cup of whole milk to the roasted cauliflower. Blend on high until the cauliflower is the consistency of mashed potatoes.
Put a glug of olive oil into a large stock pot. Throw in the chopped celery and carrots. Put a medium heat under the pot and sweat the veg for a good five minutes.
Add the big can of chicken broth to the pot and drop in the bay leaf. Stir.
Add the blended-up cauliflower to the pot and season with salt and cayenne pepper to taste.
Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.
Throw in the 2 bags of frozen corn. Stir.
Add in the two tablespoons of butter and some liquid smoke to taste.* Stir.
Continue to cook on low heat simmering gently until ready to serve.
Just before serving, stir in the chopped garlic.
Serve hot with bacon bits or chopped pistachios for garnish.
Serves 4 – 6. My cost approx. $ 9.60 total – about $ 1.92 per serving.
*Be careful with the liquid smoke. A little goes a long way. GMN