Creamy Vegan Cauliflower Soup

I love all vegan soups and stews (especially when they are as cozy as this amazing vegan cream of mushroom soup). Now this ultra comforting and creamy vegan Cauliflower Soup has gone to the top of my favorites. Winter cooking to me is all about foods that feel warm and cozy on the inside, and they don’t all have to include pumpkin or pumpkin spice or some variation thereof. (No offence, punkin.) And while the warmth of a kitchen can be welcome in fall and winter, recipes I can accomplish in minutes – or that are mostly hands-off – are still very much my preference, because who has the time? The great thing about this creamy vegan Cauliflower Soup is that it needs just five ingredients. And what is even more amazing is the crunchy breadcrumb topping that goes on top of it. I got that idea from Jamie Oliver who used it in a cauliflower pasta recipe, and it tastes so good, you will be licking the bowl. Maybe the pot too.

What we love about this recipe

So creamy Comforting All that deliciousness for so little work and with so few ingredients Healthy Use every bit of the cauliflower, leaves and all. The crunchy breadcrumb topping is the perfect complement. It looks totally appetizing because, you know, you eat with your eyes first and all that.

Helpful tips

There are just a few ingredients here, so don’t skip on anything. And if you want your soup to look as white and pristine as possible, which is a nice look, try not to brown or burn anything, especially the garlic. You’ll start out by warming up some garlic in extra virgin olive oil. You can use vegan butter as well. Don’t brown the garlic, just let it get warm in the oil and simmer slightly, then proceed with the other ingredients. Next to go into the pot are the cauliflower and the cashew milk. I like cashew milk because I find it is the creamiest in these recipes, and I make mine at home by blitzing four cups of water with 1 cup of raw cashews (soak the cashews in the milk for 30 minutes, if you don’t have a high-powered blender). You can use storebought cashew milk. Let the cauliflower simmer in the cashew milk with a sprig of sage (don’t chop it so you can fish it out later), and salt and a dash of ground white pepper (or black pepper is fine). Simmering the cauliflower for a long time–about 20-30 minutes–does two things. It tenderizes the cauliflower, of course, but it also rids it of that cauliflower-y smell. Next fish out the sage leaves and blitz the cauliflower, cashew milk until very smooth. Return the soup to the pot and thin out a bit with water if you wish. Check seasoning and finally, stir in some lemon zest. It really livens up the soup. The cauliflower soup is delicious by itself but what makes it spectacular is the crunchy breadcrumb topping. I had never thought of using the cauliflower leaves in cooking until I heard of this idea from Jamie Oliver, and it is a good one. I toss the cauliflower leaves in the food processor and chop them up until they are in small bits. Put them in a small skillet with some oil or butter and let them begin to brown. Then add in herbs like more sage and/or thyme and breadcrumbs (gluten-free breadcrumbs work just as well) along with salt and ground black pepper. You want the breadcrumbs to get crunchy and I realized that it was almost impossible to do it without a lot of oil, which is fine on TV but not in a home kitchen. So I put the skillet under the broiler for a few minutes, which did a nice job of crisping up the breadcrumbs and making them all golden and crunchy. Stir some vegan parmesan into the breadcrumb topping, if you wish, for even more flavor.

More vegan cauliflower recipes

Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpeas with Indian Spices Creamy Cauliflower Curry Sheet Pan Curry Roasted Cauliflower and Potatoes Cheesy Vegan Cauliflower Pasta Bake Aloo Gobi