This soup is surprisingly delicious! So thick and creamy yet dairy-free. Even my husband, who isn’t a cauliflower fan loved it! Roasting the cauliflower first, before adding to the pot of soup, brings out a wonderful sweetness. So hearty, even though it’s meatless, it’s satisfying enough to serve as a main course soup. Each large bowl has only 151 calories and 7 grams of fat.
Ingredients
Ingredients for Soup:
- 1 large head of cauliflower, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons Smart Balance Light
- 1 cup onions, diced
- 1 cup carrot, chopped
- 1 cup celery, chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- Black pepper, to taste
- 1 (32 oz) container or 2 (15 oz) cans vegetable broth (low sodium is fine if desired)
- Chives, minced (optional for topping)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil for easy clean-up. Place chopped cauliflower and garlic cloves on pan. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Toss with your hands until well coated. Place pan in oven and roast for 25-30 minutes until cauliflower is tender. Stir once, if desired. Remove from oven. Finely chop roasted garlic cloves. Set pan aside.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, add onions, carrots and celery. Cook in microwave for about 4 minutes to soften.
- In a large nonstick pot, melt Smart Balance Light over medium-high heat. Add softened vegetables and sauté for 2 minutes. Stir often. Mix in roasted cauliflower and garlic, dried thyme and a little black pepper. Sauté for 2 minutes. Pour in vegetable broth and mix well. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer. cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, until all veggies are soft.
- Using the tip of a spatula, chop cauliflower into small pieces. Remove 2 cups of soup from pot and set aside. Puree remaining soup in pot. Either use a hand held blender and puree soup right in the pot or cool soup and add to a blender to puree. Work in batches. Must be cooled or it will spill over the top of the blender, when hot. Add pureed soup back to pot and stir in the 2 cups of soup set aside. Mix well. Or, you could puree the entire soup. It’s delicious that way too!Season with more black pepper, if desired. Heat and serve. Ladle into bowls. Top each with a pinch of chives, if desired.
- This soup freezes great!
Notes
Makes 7 cups total. Each serving, 1¾ cups.
Food Facts
A chowder is a thick, rich, chunky soup usually made with a white sauce base though Manhattan chowders have a tomato base. Originally, it was a fishermen’s stew made with seafood but today, vegetable chowders are common such as corn chowder, potato chowder and this yummy cauliflower one! Cauliflower is a member of the cabbage family. Cauliflower is composed of bunches of tiny florets on a cluster of stalks. The entire floret portion is edible. Mark Twain said,” Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.“
Healthy Benefits
Cauliflower is high in fiber, vitamin C, and some iron.
WW Freestyle SmartPoints 2-Blue
WW SmartPoints 2-Green
WW Points Plus 4
Food Facts
A chowder is a thick, rich, chunky soup usually made with a white sauce base though Manhattan chowders have a tomato base. Originally, it was a fishermen’s stew made with seafood but today, vegetable chowders are common such as corn chowder, potato chowder and this yummy cauliflower one! Cauliflower is a member of the cabbage family. Cauliflower is composed of bunches of tiny florets on a cluster of stalks. The entire floret portion is edible. Mark Twain said,” Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.“
Healthy Benefits
Cauliflower is high in fiber, vitamin C, and some iron.
WW Freestyle SmartPoints 2-Blue
WW SmartPoints 2-Green
WW Points Plus 4
| SKINNY FACTS: for 1¾ cups serving 151 calories, 7g fat, 1g sat. fat, 0g chol, 5g protein, 21g carbs, 7g fiber, 728mg sod, 8g sugar |
| FACTS: for SmartPoints 55 calories, 1g sat. fat, 0g protein, 0g sugar |
Skinny Facts
Serving: 1.75cupCalories: 151kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 5gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 728mgFiber: 7gSugar: 8gBlue Smart Points: 2Green Smart Points: 2Plus Points: 4
Am I missing some ingredients? What accounts for the difference in Smart Points and Freestyle points? I don’t see any of the new “0” point foods which would make a difference. Sounds delicious, but too many smartpoints for a veggie soup! Thanks!
Sorry for the confusion. The SmartPoints and Freestyle points are the same.
I hope you thoroughly enjoy this yummy soup Vicki!
All the best,
Nancu
I just made this tonight and sadly I found it so extremely bland. I added a little salt & more pepper and a cup of sharp cheddar cheese. Still wasn’t all that flavorful. For all the work this recipe want worth it. I love cauliflower. It was certainly edible with adding the cheese.
I’m so sorry to hear that Rosenary. I’ve made it several times and have always been happy with the flavor. Sometimes to make it heartier I add some cooked chicken. I guess this recipe isn’t for you.
All the best,
Nancy