Creamy Roasted Garlic-Cauliflower Soup

ROASTED GARLIC-CAULIFLOWER SOUP

I love soup, all times of the year, I just love soups. They are comforting and flavorful. A few days ago, I had gum surgery to prepare my tooth for a crown. I broke my molar eating an almond! Let me tell you it was pretty painful, so I made myself one of my most comforting soups. This roasted garlic cauliflower soup will warm your soul. It is actually probably my favorite soup I have ever made. I am not a huge fan of cauliflower when it’s raw or steamed. As a matter of fact, steamed cauliflower is probably one of the worst vegetables I can think of. However, roast it with olive oil or parmesan cheese-it becomes an entirely different species and I can’t get enough. My family fights over the little bits on the baking sheet-we love it so much. But I digress because that is for another time. 

It took me several trial and errors to figure out how to roast garlic. I know, right? I have been cooking and obsessing over any cooking show I could get my hands on and yet I didn’t know how to effectively roast a bulb of garlic. How funny. However, here is my trick and it worked so well, I thought I would share it here. I cut off the end of the garlic-which side you may ask? Cut off the side that exposes the cloves of garlic (the papery side). Make sure the garlic cloves are exposed and if you don’t see them, peel around the cloves enough that you can see the cloves. I then put the garlic bulb in foil and drizzle with olive oil. Place the garlic in a 400 degree oven and roast for 10-12 minutes. 

At the same time, I placed the cauliflower on a baking sheet to roast. I use 1 ½ heads of cauliflower for a family of 4. If you need more, use the entire 2 heads or less use 1. I rinsed the cauliflower then cut off the stem to have small bite size pieces of cauliflower. I use parchment paper to make cleaning up easier, but it’s not necessary. Drizzle the cauliflower with olive oil making sure it is evenly coated. You can place it in a mixing bowl to coat, I usually mix it on the baking sheet because I like one less dirty dish that I have to clean. I add salt and pepper to taste. Roast the cauliflower at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. I really like my veggies really roasted so if you are like me you can leave your cauliflower in a little longer until they are browned and delicious. This is the chef’s choice really-like them a little less roasted and bake them for less. 

While your cauliflower and garlic are roasting, dice a medium size yellow onion and saute in a pan. I like a lot of onions so I use the entire thing. Add olive oil to your pan ( I like to add a Tbsp of butter-because why not) then saute until onions are translucent, around 5-8 minutes. Add salt to taste. 

Once all the veggies are roasted and sauteed, I pull out the garlic and allow it to cool so I can squeeze out the cloves without giving myself 3 degree burns on my fingers. Place veggies in the blender with 4 cups of Chicken broth. I like Kettle and Fire Chicken broth. *Pro tip-when you add hot liquid to a blender-always start on low speed or you could have a huge mess from the pressure caused by the steam of the hot liquid. Once it begins to cool a bit, you can increase the level of blending until the veggies are a smooth consistency. Add to a pot and add the cheddar cheese until melted. 

Don’t be afraid to experiment in your kitchen. I added bacon on top with grated cheese because I didn’t have scallions to add as a garish. If you are ever out of an ingredient, sometimes it’s perfectly fine to play around in the kitchen (sometimes) So add whatever toppings you prefer. I had gum surgery when I made this so I just added cheddar cheese on top-but croutons are a great topping for some texture. 

Serve with delicious bread and ENJOY!