Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Name: Creamy Cauliflower Soup
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons butter; 6 ounces onion (chopped; 1 medium); 2 tablespoons garlic (minced); 1 large head cauliflower (chopped; 2 pounds with refuse, 1.5 pounds without); 1 quart chicken broth (not low-sodium); 1/4 teaspoon white pepper; 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 1/4 cup heavy cream; 1/2 cup grated parmesan

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This creamy cauliflower soup is wonderfully flavored with garlic, nutmeg, and parmesan. Ready in just 30 minutes, it's perfect as a first course at dinner, but you can also serve a bowl of it for lunch.

Cauliflower soup is served in a bowl with a spoon.

This delicious cauliflower soup has a delicate flavor and a wonderfully creamy texture. It's restaurant-level good, yet truly easy to make. It's a great way to entice picky eaters to eat cauliflower! Everyone in my family enjoys it, adults and kids.

Ingredients

You'll only need a few simple ingredients to make this soup. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of what you'll need:

Butter: I use salted butter.
Aromatics: Onion and garlic add great flavor.
Cauliflower: You will need one large cauliflower head for this recipe.
Chicken broth: Store-bought is fine. But when I have some leftover homemade chicken broth, I use that.
Spices: White pepper and ground nutmeg.
Heavy cream: Add wonderful creaminess.
Grated Parmesan: Make sure you use finely grated parmesan, not coarsely shredded.

Variations

I consider this cauliflower soup pretty much perfect and very rarely make any changes. But here are a few ways you can change this recipe:

Use olive oil instead of butter. Personally, I prefer butter, but olive oil is very good, too.
Use shallots instead of onions.
For an extra creamy soup, increase the heavy cream to ½ cup.
A pinch of dried thyme can replace the nutmeg or you can add it as an additional layer of flavor.

Instructions

Scroll down to the recipe card for details. Here are the basic steps for making this soup:

Saute onions, garlic, and cauliflower in butter. You want the onions to be soft, but you don't want them browned and caramelized for this recipe.

Add chicken broth and simmer until the cauliflower is tender. This only takes 15 minutes or so.

The last step is to puree the soup, then stir in heavy cream, spices, and parmesan.

Expert Tip

There are two ways to puree a soup. For a very creamy texture, working in at least two batches, carefully transfer the hot soup to your stand blender. Blend each batch until completely smooth and transfer it to a bowl. When all batches are done, return the pureed soup to the pot and proceed with the recipe. You can see the results of this method in the photos on this page - very smooth and creamy.

The second method is to use an immersion blender and blend the soup right inside the pot. I used this method when filming the video, and as you can see, the soup is not as creamy. However, it's just as tasty, and using an immersion blender is easier. Which of these methods you choose is up to you. Both work and both yield great results, just different textures.

When using a stand blender, never fill your blender past the maximum fill line. It's best to fill it no more than half full. If the lid of your blender wasn't designed to allow steam to escape, remove the centerpiece and drape a clean towel on top of the lid. You can hold down the lid when blending to prevent it from being pushed off, but do so without actually placing your hand - or your face - over the hot steam.

Recipe FAQs

Can I use black pepper instead of white?

Yes, it's OK to use black pepper, but the black speckles will show on the white soup.

Can I use frozen cauliflower?

Yes. You can use frozen cauliflower in this recipe. You can add it frozen to the pot. You will need to cook it for a bit longer, perhaps 4 or 5 minutes.

Is it OK to substitute milk for heavy cream?

I don't recommend that. For the best texture and flavor, use heavy cream.

Serving Suggestions

I often have a bowl of this soup for my lunch, especially in the winter. I sometimes have it with buttered 90-second bread or almond flour bread on the side, and sometimes I enjoy it on its own.

You can also serve it as a dinner appetizer. In this case, serve a cup per person instead of a bowl.

Storing Leftovers

You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them gently in the microwave, covered, at 50% power. You can also reheat them over low heat on the stovetop, making sure not to let the soup boil. I don't recommend freezing this soup.