I love a nice, comforting soup, so this creamy cauliflower soup with crispy chickpeas and shiitake bacon really hit the spot. You’ll need just 8 ingredients and 30 minutes. It’s so flavorful and cozy!
I was the kid at Sweet Tomatoes obsessed with the soup bar more than the ice cream. Crazy, I know. My mom and her friends would take me and my friends there throughout summer vacation. I was obsessed with buffets in general, but seeing all the varieties of soup always excited me most. I would usually have at least four bowls, both because I just loooved soup and because I wanted to impress my friends with my soup-drinking abilities.
And it looks like nothing has changed because I’m still obsessed with soup. Just look at this creamy cauliflower soup paired with all the crispy chickpeas, shiitake bacon, and well-toasted sourdough! So much flavor and texture, and soup always makes me feel warm inside, no matter how the day is going. Ever since I learned of the natural creaminess of queen cauliflower, I’ve been obsessed. This soup is nine ingredients and only includes stuff that makes you feel really good inside.
The NINE ingredients you’ll need for this creamy cauliflower soup:
cauliflower
onion
garlic
olive oil
red chili flakes
lemon juice
nutmeg
black pepper
nutritional yeast
How to Serve this Soup
Five words: shiitake bacon, crispy chickpeas, sourdough.
Toss the chickpeas with whichever spices you want and roast them.
For the shiitake bacon, you can cook them in a cast iron for a few minutes and then roast, or you can just put them on a baking sheet with the listed ingredients for 10-12 minutes. The recipe for the shiitake bacon is here.
Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Shiitake Bacon and Crispy Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 1 medium head of cauliflower, cut into florets
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ white onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves
- ½ tsp red chili flakes
- 4 cups water
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- pinch of nutmeg
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Crispy Chickpeas
- 1 cup canned chickpeas
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp tamari
- light drizzle of olive oil
Shiitake Bacon
- recipe linked in instructions
Instructions
- Add olive oil to a large pot. Cook onion, garlic, and red chili flakes for 3-4 minutes.
- Add all the cauliflower and cook for at least 5 minutes, until it is more tender but not all the way cooked.
- Add water (or vegetable stock), bring the contents of the pot to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Let the pot cool off a little before blending with lemon juice, nutmeg, black pepper, nutritional yeast and salt.
Crispy Chickpeas
- Preheat oven to 425 F. Mix all the ingredients together. Spread on a baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes.
Shiitake Bacon
- Find the recipe here.
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