Cream of roasted cauliflower by Chris Lu

Inspiration: https://cookieandkate.com/creamy-roasted-cauliflower-soup-recipe/

Challenge with this dish is to create enough flavor so the soup doesn’t come out bland.

Recipe I used:
- ½ cauliflower head (would recommend using a whole head, this was all I had)
- 1 red onion (any onion works, this was a big one)
- 4 cloves of garlic
- Lots of chicken stock (basically enough chicken stock so that all the ingredients are
covered after simmering) (also my chicken stock was heavy on the aromatics such as
onion, carrots, celery, parsley stems, peppercorn, etc.)
- 3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced (smaller is better as it cooks faster)
- ½ - ¾ cup of carrots, diced (adds to the flavor and color)
- Sherry or any alcohol that tastes like it (I used a Chinese alcohol that tastes like
madeira, maybe apple cider vinegar could work too)
- 2-3 tbsp of butter
- ½ - 1 cup of cream
- Dry basil, a lot but also to taste
- Chili powder
- Cinnamon, to taste Flavor enhancers
- Nutmeg (recommended, but I didn’t have)
- Sugar, to taste
- Parsley, to taste
- Mint, for garnish
- Roasted nuts (chop them up)

Recipe

1. Wash and break cauliflower into small pieces and toss in olive oil on baking pan
2. With the “hair” of the cauliflower pointing up (stem part on pan), put in oven at 400F
long enough for browning (maybe 20-30 minutes?)
3. Dice onion and sauté in soup pan until translucent and beginning to caramelize (I use
olive oil)
4. Mince garlic and add to onion, sauté until fragrant
5. Dice carrots and add to same pan
6. Add roasted cauliflower and sauté for a couple minutes
7. Deglaze pan with ¼ to ½ cup of alcohol of choice
8. Add chicken stock until ingredient are well covered
9. Bring to a boil and then add potatoes
10. Turn down to a good simmer and let simmer until potatoes are well cooked
11. Make sure the ingredients are just covered by the liquid, otherwise add a bit more stock
or let reduce a bit
12. Add “flavor enhancers” and salt and pepper and let them release their flavors for a
couple of minutes before tasting
13. Adjust accordingly
14. Maybe add a dash of vinegar or lemon juice?
15. Add butter and stir until melted
16. Add cream, stir in and then cut the heat.
17. Blend using the soup blending mode (60 – 90 seconds in batches)
18. I usually recombine the batches so that the thickness is even
19. Serve with a dash of cream, a sprinkle of nuts and of chopped mint