This was today's yummy soup.
Curried cauliflower. No real recipe...just loosely woven from several I read online... and it is a little less yellow than some because I added a fair bit of parsley...because I wanted to...
My little bundle on top? A dollop of yogurt, some lightly toasted flaked almonds, tiny bits of chopped dried apricots, a bit more parsley and some chopped green onion tops. .... oh, this one is a keeper!
Oh, and...we had it with fresh out of the oven homemade bread slathered with butter .... mmmm..... ...
Here is my version... add or subtract any ingredients ...taste as you go along and enjoy your results. We really enjoyed it.
Curried Cauliflower Soup
1/4 to 1/2 head of cauliflower florets ( I pre-cooked mine and cut them small)
1/4 to 1/2 a medium onion (finely diced)
stick of celery (finely diced)
one medium apple (finely diced)
one small potato (finely diced)
2 or so cups chicken broth
1 cup water
2 tsp curry paste (or powder or whatever you like to use)
2 tbsp olive oil
nob of butter
clove of garlic (crushed)
1 tbsp flour
big sprinkle of turmeric (it gives great colour)
small bay leaf (and any other spices you might like)
dash of cumin
grind of fresh pepper
1/2 cup milk or cream (optional)
my garnish to give it that extra something special... dollop of yogurt, finely chopped dried apricots, lightly toasted almond flakes, finely chopped onion greens, and a few sprigs of chopped parsley.... or whatever you choose...
I cut all my ingredients finely as I knew I was going to puree it in the end. If you prefer to leave it as a chunky soup then just don't chop things as small.
Gently sweat onions and celery in some olive oil and a nob of butter on medium heat. (If you want to add extra veggies... try a carrot and some red peppers chopped finely as well.) When they are nice and soft, I add the crushed garlic and only cook it about one minute longer, make sure it doesn't burn and get bitter tasting. Then, I sprinkle on about 1 tbsp of flour... stir it and let it gently cook another minute or so. It is dry looking, but fine...just don't let it get too brown or stick to the pot. I pour in a 1/2 cup or so of chicken broth if I get concerned with it being too dry or beginning to brown too much. Stir right away as you add it...to mix in the as yet uncooked flour and to keep it from becoming lumpy. It becomes creamy looking almost right away. (It even tasted good at this point!)
Add the potato and apple if you are using them and add a cup or two of broth. Let it come to a boil, stir a bit and then turn it low to simmer. Put on a lid.
Meanwhile chop the cauli into florets and microwave them in a small bowl...or steam them on the stove ... I like to precook them just to make sure they will be nice and soft for blending when I am ready for that.
Add the cauliflower and some spices and the curry paste... good stir, add cup of water and cover to simmer .... stir occasionally and taste ....add more spices if you choose.
Once veggies are soft and you are happy with the flavour ... mine takes about 2 hours....turn off heat, use hand immersion blender to turn it into creamy cauliflower soup. Let it cool a bit before adding milk or cream...stir, ladle into bowl, add a pretty little garnish and enjoy.
I think that's it.... I hope you give it a try ....
