Roasted Cauliflower Soup

Growing up I hated cauliflower.  We always had it boiled, and sometimes, if we were really lucky, we got to have cheese on it.  Very typical for the 80's, I think.  But not great to get kids to like it.

When I was 15 or so, I finally braved a piece of raw cauliflower and was shocked with how much I actually liked it.

Now, it is one of my favorite vegetables.  I love it roasted with a bit of olive oil and cumin seeds.  Mmmmm!

Recently, I learned of this delicious cauliflower soup.  I found it on Cooking Classy's website and am much obliged, I'm sure.

picture taken from CookingClassy.com

What you need:

1 large head cauliflower, cored and broken into small bite size pieces

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

3 Tbsp butter

1 cup finely chopped yellow onion

3 Tbsp flour

1 garlic clove minced

3 cups milk

2 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tsp dried)

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme (or a slightly heaping 1/4 tsp dried)

1 bay leaf

1/4 tsp granulated sugar

4 oz shredded white cheddar cheese (1 cup)

1 oz finely grated parmesan cheese (slightly packed 1/4 cup)

What to do:

Preheat oven to 425*.  Place cauliflower on baking sheet, drizzle with oilve oil and toss to evenly coat, then spread into an even lawer and season lightly with salt and pepper.  Bake in preheated oven 20-25 minutes, until golden.  Remove from oven and set aside.

In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat.  Add in onion and saute until tender, about 4-5 minutes.  Add in flour and cook, stirring constantly to create a roux, 1 1/2 minutes, adding in garlic during last 30 seconds of cooking.  While whisking, slowly pour in milk followed by chicken broth and cream.  Add in parsley, thyme, bay leaf, sugar, roasted cauliflower and season soup with salt and pepper to taste.  Bring to a boil, stirring frequently and allow to cook until thickened slightly.  Puree 3 cups of the soup in a blender and return to soup in pot.  Remove from heat and stir cheeses.  Serve warm garnished with additional shredded white cheddar, parsley, and serve with fresh bread or croutons if desired.

This soup is so delicious!  It thickens quite a bit in the refrigerator when there are leftovers, so I like to add a bit of milk the next day to thin it out a bit, but it is so good the next day, too!

Buen Provecho!