I somehow inherited two very large heads of cauliflower that were taking up a lot of space in my refrigerator. Determined to come up with something other than steamed or roasted cauliflower, I decided to create a recipe for a creamy winter soup. I've had cauliflower soup before but always felt it was just too bland. After scouring my pantry I found some interesting ingredients, such as Porcini Mushroom powder (D'artagnon), a bit of curry and water chestnuts. It all came together for an incredibly tasty recipe: Roasted Cauliflower Soup with Water Chestnuts. I hope you enjoy this as much as we did.


Ingredients

• 2 heads cauliflower/ cut into 1" florets, about 10 cups
• 3 large garlic cloves, cut in half lengthwise
• 1 medium-large yellow onion, cut in half and quartered
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup of carrots, finely diced
• 1 cup of celery, finely diced
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 tsp porcini mushroom powder
  
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 tbsp sweet butter
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup coarsely diced water chestnuts (1 small can)
• fresh chives
• cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Cut cauliflower into 1" florets
3. In a large bowl, using your hands, mix together 4 cups of cauliflower, garlic, onion and 4 tbsp olive oil. Place on a tray and place in hot oven, roasting for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown.
4. While this is roasting, place butter in a dutch oven or 4 quart kettle, heat medium high. Add carrots, celery, Porcini mushroom powder and curry, stirring to blend together.
5. Add chicken broth and water, stir.
6. Add roasted vegetables to the pot when ready (reserve 6 -8 cauliflower florets for garnish), and Simmer of medium heat for 30 minutes
7. Discard bay leaf and in a blender puree soup in batches until smooth, pouring pureed soup into a large bowl.
8. Transfer puree soup back into the kettle. Simmer over medium heat stir for a few minutes.
9. Add cream, salt and pepper to taste and stir until blended and warm, about 3 minutes.

Plating the dish

• Place soup in a serving bowl.
• Garnish with cauliflower florets, water chestnuts and snipped fresh chives. Top with a dash of cayenne pepper that runs the length of the bowl. Be careful not to be heavy handed with this pepper--its very hot!