A WINTEr VEGETABLE SOUP

Option to make with cream or dairy free ~ a wonderful and warming hearty soup.

My children love cauliflower.

I have to say it’s not my fave of the vegetables and I personally find it challenging to add to our dishes in a creative and flavoursome way. I love this roasted soup recipe I vaguely invented from excess veggies we had during the week ~ its a perfect winter warmer. We all enjoyed soup in thermoses while out-and-about and I have come to love soup as an alternative option for healthy eating on the go.

When writing up this recipe I was also surprised to find some benefits of eating cauliflower included:

Nutrient-rich: Cauliflower is packed with essential vitamins and minerals.
Antioxidant properties: It contains antioxidants that protect your cells from damage.
Anti-inflammatory effects: Certain compounds in cauliflower help reduce inflammation in the body.
Rich in fibre: Can promote healthy digestion and reduces the risk of some chronic diseases.
Supports heart health: It is low in saturated fat and cholesterol and may help lower blood pressure.
Potential cancer-fighting properties: Some compounds in cauliflower may inhibit cancer cell growth.
Nutritional management: It is low in calories and high in fibre, making it beneficial for maintaining health.

All the recent research this century on nutrition and gastrointestinal health states that a higher plant-based diet is more beneficial for longevity and lower rates of most diseases. The option to make this recipe without any animal-based ingredients is super easy.

Always consider which non animal-product oils and ingredients you are substituting as some plant or nut oils are not healthy for human consumption. Make sure to keep your ingredients clean and simple. Mostly I use organic or minimum spray fresh produce from the farmers market and organic ingredients from the health food store or the whole foods isle at the supermarket.

CAULIFLOWER SOUP w/ variations

Serves 4

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MAKE IT:

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 Cauliflower

2 cups Potatoes

1/2 Fennel bulb

Oil (extra virgin), Ghee or Butter (organic no salt) for roasting & frying

2 tablespoon of bone broth (nutra organics) powder OR vegetable stock

375g pre-soaked or canned Chickpeas (put a handful aside if you would like these for presentation)

1/2 cup Cream (optional)

Magnesium salt to taste

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METHOD:

Heat fan-forced oven to 200ºC

Cut cauliflower into florets (removing leaves). Blanch cauliflower in a bowl or pot of boiling water for 5-10 minutes.

Peel and cut potatoes.

Pop cauliflower and potatoes in oven dish (either separately or together depending on your dish sizes and oven capacity). Add ghee and or olive oil to roast vegetables. I like to utilise a combination of oil and ghee.

Method for using ghee.

put 2-3 tablespoons of ghee on your oven dish
pop in warm oven for 5mins until liquid
put prepared vegetables in a mixing bowl
pour ghee over vegetables (put oily dish aside to use shortly)
mix ghee to cover vegetables then add back to the oven dish
pop in oven to cook

If you’re using one oven dish the cauliflower may brown on top so I also use an olive oil spray if the florets are browning; though the slightly charcoal tops will add good flavour to your soup.

Roast the vegetables for 25minutes.

In a stovetop pot add a little butter, ghee or oil for frying. Cut fennel bulb into small cubes.

Add fennel on medium heat to brown.

Boil water in kettle. Add 2 tablespoons of bone broth to a heat proof jug. add 2 cups of boiling water and mix. OPTION to use vegetable broth or a fresh stock of your choice.

Add roasted vegetables to pot on stove and cover with bone broth (add a little water to cover vegetables but don’t over fill it), bring to the boil - then simmer for 10minutes.

Add the strained chickpeas to pot. Simmer for another 10minutes.

Remove from heat and add to a high speed blender or food processor. Depending on your appliance you may need to allow your mixture to cool before blending. Option to use a stick blender if yours can create a fine blend.

Transfer back to pot ~ the mixture will be quite thick. Option to add 1/2 cup cream (or water) to bring to a ideal consistency.

Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt (or just a pinch) to taste.

It’s important not to boil the cream so once you have added the cream keep on very low heat or serve straight away.

Option to top with extra chickpeas, crushed walnuts, pepititas, or chopped flat parsley. Serve with crusty bread.

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