Broccoli and cauliflower are the highlighted Vermont Harvest of the Month for October. Try this delicious and easy vegan soup recipe featuring cauliflower from the blog First Mess – and take the Vermont Harvest of Month Pledge to help bring local, healthy foods into our schools.
Vegan Roasted Cauliflower Soup
1 large head of cauliflower, trimmed
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed (I like their waxy/creamy quality)
2 cooking onions, papery skin removed
1-2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons oil
Salt and pepper
Juice of 1/3 of a lemon (like 2 teaspoons)
5-6 cups vegetable stock
Optional toppings: some kind of flavorful oil (truffle, extra virgin olive, walnut, etc.), croutons, toasted chopped nuts, chopped leafy herbs, balsamic reduction, sriracha, flaky sea salt, or fresh pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Remove the core from the cauliflower and chop it into rough florets. Place the florets into a 9 x 13 glass baking dish. Chop the potatoes into pieces about half the size of the cauliflower florets and toss them into the baking dish as well. Chop the onions into rough 1-2 inch pieces and toss them into the dish. It doesn’t matter if the layers stick to each other. Remove the leaves from the rosemary sprig and chop/mince them up. Sprinkle the rosemary over the vegetables in the dish. Liberally salt the vegetables and season with pepper to taste. Add the oil and toss the vegetables until evenly coated with the oil, herb, and seasoning.
Roast vegetables for about an hour, flipping and stirring them with a metal spatula/spoon to promote even browning. When done, remove from the oven and squeeze the 1/3 lemon over the hot vegetables. Using your metal spatula, toss the vegetables with the lemon juice, scraping the browned bits off the bottom.
Once the vegetables are cool enough for you to handle, start blending them in batches with the stock. Purée until smooth and pour into a big soup pot. Continue blending in batches until you’ve used up everything. Heat the large soup pot full of purée over medium heat until it boils. Add more stock or water to thin the soup out if necessary and adjust seasoning to taste. Serve hot with optional garnishes.