Name: Creamy Cauliflower Soup
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 tbsp olive oil; 2 large onions (peeled and chopped); 3 regular heads of cauliflower (outer leaves discard, chopped into small florets); 5 cups (1200ml) hot vegetable or chicken stock (- either homemade or use 3-4 stock cubes with water. Use bouillon for gluten free); 3/4 tsp garlic salt; 250 g mature/strong cheddar cheese; 2/3 cup (180ml) double/heavy cream; Salt and pepper to taste

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My creamy cauliflower soup with cheddar is thick, rich and luxurious.
The perfect comforting dinner on a cold day with a wedge of fresh bread.
Just 7 ingredients and 25 minutes are all you need for the best cauliflower soup you'll ever eat.

Two soup bowls filled with cauliflower soup on a wooden table. Soup is topped with chopped chives.

In typical Kitchen Sanctuary style, I'm going all-in with cream AND cheese to make this soup taste luscious and rich. I'm not trying to make a diet soup that 'tastes creamy but with no cream' or 'fills you up with no fat'.

This is just a great tasting, hearty soup that will leave you sighing with happiness whilst you eat.

Back in my youth, I used to work at a fried chicken shop where we'd get a free meal during each shift. There was a sandwich shop across the road that did the best cauliflower soup ever. If that soup was on special, I was straight over there. Yes, a 17-year-old who preferred cauliflower soup to fried chicken and chips. It really was that good.

It was that soup I had in mind when I made this recipe.

I told Chris I was making cauliflower soup for lunch, and received a look of dismay and an unintelligible, displeased grunt. I could see his brain figuring out what he could have for his real lunch later.

So I made it.

...and he finished every last drop. Then requested it for lunch the next day too.

It tasted just like the soup from the sandwich shop.

What do we need?

Ingredients for cauliflower soup on a wooden table

How to make this cream of cauliflower soup

**Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post**.

We start by chopping up the cauliflower. I use 3 medium cauliflower for this - which is enough to make 10 servings of soup. That's lunch for a few days and a few portions for the freezer.

Fry chopped onion in a little olive oil in a large sauce pan (you'll need plenty of room for that cauliflower, so make sure it's a big pan). Add in cauliflower, stock and garlic salt. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes.

Take off the heat and whizz using a hand blender. Put back on the heat, add in cheddar cheese and cream and stir until he cheese has melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with a sprinkling of cheese and a few chives.

Overhead image of a large pan filled with cauliflower soup topped with grated cheese and chopped chives

It's now on my go-to list of soups and will be making a regular lunchtime appearance.

25 minutes to lunchtime happiness.......

What to serve it with

You can serve this cheesy cauliflower soup with:

Homemade Artisan Bread
Topped with Crispy Bacon
For a more substantial dinner why not serve them alongside Garlic Mushroom Stuffed Rolls or these Stuffed Cheesy Breads with Spinach and Bacon

I don't like cauliflower, what can I use instead?

You can replace the cauliflower with broccoli for an easy swap and make Cream of Broccoli Soup.

If you're looking to use up multiple vegetables, you could also pile in a selection of veggies such as carrot, leek, sweet potato and onion (it's best not to mix green veg with red or orange veg, as you'll get murky looking brown soup). Simmer for 5 minutes longer if using carrot, as it takes a little longer to soften. Then blend, as with the cauliflower soup and add in the cream and cheese.

Two white bowls filled with cauliflower soup, topped with cheese and chives on a wooden table

More fantastic soup recipes

Still hungry for more Soups? I've got a whole category devoted to soups here. Try my....

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Close up of a white bowl filled with cauliflower soup and topped with chopped chives, grated cheese and black pepper

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

By: Nicky Corbishley

Creamy Cauliflower soup - 7 ingredients and 25 minutes to the best cauliflower soup you'll ever eat. Gluten free too!

4.93 from 13 votes

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Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Total Time 25 mins

Course Lunch

Cuisine British

Servings 10 servings

Calories 220 kcal

Ingredients

▢ 1 tbsp olive oil
▢ 2 large onions - peeled and chopped
▢ 3 regular heads of cauliflower - outer leaves discard, chopped into small florets
▢ 5 cups (1200ml) hot vegetable or chicken stock - - either homemade or use 3-4 stock cubes with water. Use bouillon for gluten free
▢ ¾ tsp garlic salt
▢ 250 g mature/strong cheddar cheese
▢ ⅔ cup (180ml) double/heavy cream
▢ Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the olive oil in a large pan, and fry the onion gently for 4-5 minutes until it starts to go translucent. Add in the cauliflower, stock and garlic salt. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, take off the heat and whizz using a hand blender. Put back on the heat, add in the cheese and cream and stir until he cheese has melted. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve with a sprinkling of cheese and black pepper and a few chives if you wish.

Video

✎ Notes

How to scale up and scale down this recipe

You can scale down this recipe sticking to the same ratios.

Can I make it gluten-free?

Yes - this soup is already gluten-free - presuming you use gluten-free stock.

Can I make it ahead?

Yes, you can make ahead, cool quickly, cover and refrigerate for 2-3 days. Reheat in a pan, stirring regularly, until piping hot.

Can I freeze this cauliflower soup?

Yes. Cool quickly, cover and freeze. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight, then reheat in a pan, stirring regularly, until piping hot.

Nutritional information is per serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 301gCalories: 220kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 9gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 721mgPotassium: 517mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 485IUVitamin C: 74mgCalcium: 229mgIron: 0.8mg

Keywords Cauliflower Recipe Ideas, Homemade Soup, Soup Ideas

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This post was first published in September 2014. Updated in August 2018 with new photos and additional tips. Updated again in November 2020 for housekeeping and with a video.

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