Curried Cauliflower and Cheddar Soup

Yum
With temperatures dropping quickly here in my home state of Connecticut, my mind is on soup. Home made, creamy and bursting with flavor this Curried Cauliflower and Cheddar Soup is one you will be proud to serve your family or guests.

The fact I have a beautiful head of orange cauliflower I purchased on sale and it's been in my refrigerator just waiting to be used, along with the colder temperatures was part of my inspiration for making this soup. The other factor came from my daughters partner who sent me a photograph of her roasted curry cauliflower she made for dinner just a couple of days ago which I can't wait to try.


You can elect to puree the soup until smooth but I chose to not puree it all, leaving the soup with some texture.

When you begin the soup be sure that you do salt the vegetables (mirepoix) so they sweat down rather than brown. This recipe is easy and comes together fairly quickly. As the soup is simmering you can smell the curry but there is just enough in there so that it becomes a warm background flavor in the soup. The combination of the half and half and cheese make it creamy and ever so delicious.

This recipe will feed 4-6 depending on the size bowls you use. If you are having dinner guests, serve it as a first course in your tea cups from your china ware that you only use on holidays! Actually jazz up your dinner table by serving it that way for your family. They'll think they are dining in a five star restaurant.

• 1 head orange cauliflower - broken into florets
• 1/2 large onion - small dice (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 2 large stalk celery - small dice (about 3/4 cup)
• 1 large carrot - peeled and sliced (about 3/4 cup)
• 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese - grated
• 1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• salt to taste
• white pepper (or black) to taste
• 1/2 tsp. curry powder
• 1 tbsp. olive oil

1. Start out by removing the outer leaves and the heavy stem of the cauliflower and breaking it down into florets. Leave some florets larger.
2. Dice your onion. Using a peeler take off the heavy ribs of the celery before dicing. Peel and dice or slice your carrot.
3. Shred your cheese and keep it in a bowl covered with plastic in the refrigerator.
4. In a stock pot over medium heat, heat up the oil. Turn the heat down to medium low and add in the onion, celery and carrots. Season with the salt and pepper. Cook and stir until softened. About 5 minutes.
5. To the pot add the all of the cauliflower, water and broth and curry powder. Bring the heat up to high.
6. Bring this to almost a boil and cook over medium heat for about 35 minutes. Test the cauliflower to see if it is tender.
7. When the cauliflower is tender, puree part of the soup so that you leave some texture to it using a hand held blender or a kitchen blender or food processor - what ever works for you.
8. Add in the half and half or cream, stir and taste for seasonings. If you are satisfied with the seasonings, pull the cheese out of the refrigerator and add it to the soup, stirring until the cheese is fully incorporated.
9. Serve in a bread bowl or regular soup bowl or as suggested above in tea cups from your china ware.

I am so pleased with the recipe and how all of the flavors blend together and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. The recipe cost approximately $5.77 to make as I got the cheese and cauliflower on sale.

You can make this vegetarian by replacing the chicken broth with vegetable broth - easy transition.