The market was out of hazelnuts, so I couldn’t make the Cauliflower with Tumeric and Hazelnuts as I had wanted.
I still picked up the cauliflower and figured I could do something with it. I decided to core it and chop it into florets. I roasted those along with six unpeeled cloves of garlic and olive oil. I should have added additional liquid to the dish to account for the extra cauliflower. With a pound of cauliflower florets, 4 cups of broth, water, etc. would have been perfect. Instead, it’s a bit too thick.
The flavor is very good. It tastes a bit like a potato-leek soup though not as delicate or “fresh” as leeks would have been. If I were using 1 pound of cauliflower, I would have used 1 tbs of herbes. I might also try this with curry as a seasoning.
When I reheat it, I will add heavy cream or perhaps even some water.
I used Calorie Counter’s Recipe Analysis to calculate the nutrition. Using my digital kitchen scale, I weighed the soup so I know that the entire dish weighed 49.2 ounces. With a serving size of 4.5 ounces, by weight, which is about 1 cup of soup, it provided 11 servings.
Nutritionally, this is a perfect meal for me: Per serving: 97 calories, 7 grams of fat, 4 grams of protein, and 4.4 grams of net carbs. It’s a much better nutritional choice than the roasted carrot soup I love.
What I found most surprising about the fresh cauliflower: it reminded me positively of turnips or rutabaga. I ate some of the stalks while raw and they were great.
The entire dish is very easy, and I will definitely make it again and again with further refinements.
Ingredients
- 1 lb 14 ounces cauliflower florets
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup water — should have been 2 cups
- 6 oz onion, diced
- 5 tbs olive oil
- 2 tbs herbes de provence
- 6 cloves garlic, skin on
Technique
Chop Cauliflower into florets approximately 1 inch wide. Discard stems.
Combine cauliflower and garlic with 3 tbs olive oil to coat.
Place on cookie sheet or roasting pan and place pan in oven for 30 minutes. Remove garlic and rotate cauliflower in pan and roast for additional 15-30 minutes (until the edges begin to brown).Chop 1/2 onion and add it to large stock pot filmed with 2 tbs olive oil. Add 1 tbs Herbes de Provence and ground sea salt and pepper.
Cook onion, stirring frequently, until softened (20-30 minutes).
Peel garlic.
After onion is softened, add cauliflower and peeled garlic to softened onions in stock pot with 4 cups of stock, etc.
Simmer for 30 minutes, uncovered.
Blend with immersion blender or blender.
Taste and adjust seasonings (if necessary, add back to pot) and simmer for another 5 minutes, along with a 1/4 cup or more milk or heavy cream or both or creme fraiche. (I prefer it without, but some enjoy it with added dairy.)
Makes 11 servings.
