Ok, I’m about seventeen years late to the party. But guys, I just started watching Gilmore Girls, and I think I finally understand why everyone is freaking out about the new episodes that are about to be released.
It is such a delightful show!
I seriously don’t know how I missed out on it in my college years. Seems like it would have fit right into our dorm rooms that were playing back-to-back Friends and Dawson’s Creek and TLC shows 24/7. (Actually, TLC dominated my college campus. In between classes, I watched a ridiculous number of babies being born and weddings taking place on all of the “Story” shows, plus probably every episode of Trading Spaces that ever aired. Like, whoa. ?) Somehow in there, though, we clearly missed getting to hang with Lorelai and Rory. But hey, seventeen years later, turns out they are still totally delightful company, especially while I’m testing recipes all day in the kitchen. And rumor has it that some of my favorite characters from other shows (ahem, Cary from The Good Wife and the one-and-only Don Draper) make appearances on this one too, so it sounds like there’s plenty to look forward to.
Are any of you serious Gilmore Girls fans? On a scale of 1-10, how excited would you say you are about the new season? ?
Well, if you happen to be settling in for another GG this season and are looking for a good bowl of comfort food to cozy up with while you watch, this Creamy Cauliflower Soup is one that you can enjoy and feel good about eating. It uses an entire head of cauliflower, it’s ultra-creamy (although made without heavy cream), and even if you don’t happen to be a huge cauliflower fan (like, ahem, Yours Truly), it’s still totally delicious. So join the cauliflower party, and let’s make some!
Yes, as I mentioned, the rockstar of this recipe is a big ol’ head of fresh cauliflower. And get ready, because we’re going to use all of it (well, except the leaves). The florets and the stem are both going to be slow-simmered in this soup until they are nice and tender and delicious, and ready to be pureed with the rest of this garlicky broth.
But speaking of broths, the other rockstar of this recipe is my favorite veggie stock — this Kitchen Basics Organic Vegetable Stock. I’m a big fan of it because it’s — yes — organic, which I think is especially important when it’s made with so many thin-skinned veggies (that can soak up pesticides more easily). But I’m also a big fan of it because it’s freaking delicious and SO flavorful. Since this soup only calls for a few ingredients, it’s definitely worth investing in a really good veggie stock to help season the soup. And I really do love this one, and am happy that they’re sponsoring this recipe.
So anyway, saute some garlic and onion, and then add in your cauliflower and veggie stock and thyme sprigs and let everything simmer until the cauli is nice and tender. Then use an immersion blender (pictured above) to puree the soup until it’s smooth, OR transfer the soup to a traditional blender in batches and puree until it’s smooth. Then stir in some milk and Parmesan (which you can leave out, if you eat vegan or dairy-free), season with salt and pepper, and…
…voila! This velvety, creamy, rich and oh-so-delicious soup will be ready to serve.
I served mine the first night with a bit of extra sautéed cauliflower and thyme leaves sprinkled on top. (See instructions below.)
And then for something different with the leftovers, I added on some garlicky roasted chickpeas on top, and actually loved the extra crunch and flavor they provided. So fun and so good! And bonus — it’s naturally gluten-free, and can also be vegan (if you leave out the cheese/butter).
However you serve this one, I think you’re really going to love it. Enjoy, friends!
Creamy Cauliflower Soup
Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium white onion, peeled and diced
- 5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 3 cups Kitchen Basics Organic Vegetable Stock
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 cups milk (I used 2%, but any kind of milk will do)
- 1/2 cup freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
- Kosher salt and freshly-craked black pepper
- optional garnishes: sauteed cauliflower florets (*see instructions below), roasted chickpeas, fresh thyme leaves, extra Parmesan, and/or extra black pepper
Instructions
- Begin by prepping your cauliflower. Remove and discard the outer leaves and trim off the stem. Quarter the cauliflower by using a knife to slice it down the middle of the stem, separating it into four sections. Separate the core from the florets. Roughly chop the florets, and then thinly slice the core. Set aside. (Also, if you’d like to garnish the soup with a bit of sautéed cauliflower, set aside 1 cup of florets for later use. See instructions below.)
- Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes, until soft and translucent, stirring occasionally. Stir in the garlic and continue to sauté for 1-2 more minutes, until fragrant.
- Add in the chopped cauliflower, vegetable stock, and thyme, and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the mixture reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and continue simmering for about 20-25 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender. Remove the thyme sprigs.
- Using either an immersion blender, or transferring the soup in batches to a traditional blender (be careful not to fill it very full when working with hot soups), puree the soup until smooth.
- Stir in the milk and Parmesan, and season the soup to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Serve immediately, topped with your desired garnishes if desired.
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!This recipe has been sponsored by McCormick, maker of the delicious Kitchen Basics Organic Vegetable Stock that I used in this recipe. Thanks for continuing to support the brands who help make this site possible!
I made this soup. I tasted great but was not as thick as I expected. Maybe I didn’t use enough cauliflower.
I tried this turned out perfect I added some spicy cheddar cheese. Gave it a kick. Also uses prepared snowflake cauliflower which made it easier to prepare.
Thank-you for posting!
This recipe is my new “go to” cauliflower soup…so easy, hearty and so delicious. Thank you.
Hi, I see lots of non-dairy comments below. I made this with soy milk (I find it thicker then the other milks ) and it worked really well. Delicious recipe, thankyou.
We had this today for lunch. I had a bag of cauliflower snow (rice) that needed to be used up. But instead of 3 cups of broth, i used 2 cup. Pluse instead of 3 cups of milk I used 1 cup of cream and 2 cups of 3% milk. We like it extra creamy. As a garnish my hubby required cooked cubed bacon. It was great. Thanks
Do you happen to have the nutritional information for this glorious soup?
Hi Sandra! We’re sorry but we are unsure of the nutrition facts/amount of calories in this recipe. We currently are not publishing nutrition facts on the site, as the nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. However, a lot of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. We hope that helps!
Just made this and it tastes delicious on a winter day :) topped with salt, cracked pepper, and buttery toasted turkish bread <3
Thanks, Sera, we’re happy you enjoyed it!
I simmered the cauliflower 15 min instead of 20 it retained the Cali taste., better. Also at the start fried the cauliflower for 3 minutes once the onions were also most done. Also I added red pepper/garlic spice and powdered garlic as I was out of fresh garlic. And I added 1/3 cup of Jalapeño cheddar .
I made this tonight for the first time and followed the recipe exactly. I was disappointed because it tasted like a glass of warm milk with a hint of cauliflower. Major lack of flavor. We love veggie soups and would love to be able to find some flavorful but healthy soup recipes. We’ve had a lot of them in restaurants but still having a hard time finding some to cook at home that compare.
We’re sorry to hear you didn’t care for this, Erica — we’re not sure what could have gone wrong.
Hi
Can I make either this soup or your butternut squash soup the day before? I noticed the recipes says to serve immediately but I want to save time and make ahead of time. Should I not add the milk products in each of these
two recipes before hand?
Thank you
Oh no, you can definitely make both of these soups before (the serve immediately just means they’re best enjoyed hot). :) With the butternut squash soup, since it’s a slow cooker recipe (and since dairy doesn’t hold up too well if added too early on in the slow cooker), we’d still advise you to use the coconut milk in that one (you barely taste it, if the flavor is a concern). We hope this helps and that you enjoy both of the soups!
Wow – this couldn’t be easier or quicker, and it was super delicious. I happened to have some roasted garlic to use up, so I swapped that out for the raw garlic. I also ended up using 4 cups of broth and 2 cups of milk. It was plenty creamy – so much so we skipped the cheese.
I too only recently discovered Gilmore Girls… and spent the holidays blowing through all 7 seasons. Eek. Back to the real world….
Thank you for sharing, Molly — we’re so glad you enjoyed this, and we bet that roasted garlic was incredible (great idea)! :)