Creamy Roasted Cauliflower Soup
This cauliflower soup recipe is the BEST! Roasted cauliflower makes it taste amazing, and a little butter (instead of cream) makes it luxuriously creamy.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 1, 2024
Behold! Lusciously creamy, yet cream-less, cauliflower soup. This cauliflower soup recipe will absolutely satisfy your craving for warm, creamy soup—no cheese required.
I know “cauliflower soup” might not sound super appealing if you’ve never had it before. Trust me, it can be so delicious! Today, I’m sharing my favorite cauliflower soup recipe, and I can’t wait for you to make it at home.
My friend Tessa introduced me to cauliflower soup a few years ago. I loved it so much that I developed my own recipe for my cookbook, Love Real Food.
As the temps and leaves have dropped this fall, I’ve had a hankering for warm, creamy soups. So, I thought I’d share a slightly simplified version of my cauliflower soup for everyone to enjoy. Let’s make some!
Why You’ll Love This Cauliflower Soup
This soup calls for basic ingredients but yields amazing flavor. If you have a head of cauliflower in the fridge, you probably have everything else you’ll need.
This cauliflower soup is the perfect accompaniment to salads and sandwiches. This traditional cauliflower soup will go with just about any other fall or winter flavors, including butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, and greens like arugula and kale. It’ll warm you up without weighing you down!
This soup freezes well for later. This recipe doesn’t yield a ton (about 4 medium bowls), but if you have extra, just freeze it!
This creamy soup is special diet-friendly. It’s gluten free as written. Check my recipe notes to learn how to make this soup vegan/dairy free by using cashews instead of butter.
How to Make the Best Cauliflower Soup
1) Roast Your Cauliflower
Behind that creamy beige exterior, you’ll find loads of irresistible roasted cauliflower flavor. Roasted cauliflower is key here—cauliflower develops caramelized notes with a greater depth of flavor as it roasts in the oven.
2) Build Flavor
Once your roasted cauliflower is almost done, you’ll sauté onions in a soup pot until tender, then add garlic and vegetable broth. Then, add your roasted cauliflower and simmer the mixture on the stove for about 20 minutes to meld the flavors.
3) Add Butter for Creaminess
You’ll transfer the contents of the pot to a blender and add butter. Butter is an easy way to add mega creamy, luxurious flavor and texture without any cream (I borrowed this technique from my butternut squash soup). If you’re like me, you always have butter in the fridge, but rarely heavy cream!
4) Blend Until Completely Smooth
I recommend blending this soup in a stand blender, rather than an immersion blender, because stand blenders yield the creamiest results. Fortunately, the ingredients used here are fairly soft, so even an inexpensive stand blender should work well (I used my fancy Vitamix, affiliate link). The final texture, in my opinion, is absolutely worth dirtying the blender bowl for.
5) Season with Nutmeg and Lemon Juice
We’re using small, subtle amounts of nutmeg and lemon juice here. You probably won’t be able to pinpoint them while you’re sipping your soup, but they offer a certain je ne sais quoi factor. They take this soup from great to fantastic!
6) Sprinkle Something Fresh on Top
I tried garnishing my soup with fresh parsley, green onion and chives. I loved them all and couldn’t pick a favorite, so use whichever you have on hand!
Watch How to Make Cauliflower Soup
Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments! I really love hearing from you.
Having a moment with cauliflower? Here are some more of my favorite cauliflower recipes on Cookie and Kate:
- Roasted Cauliflower (Four Ways!)
- Mediterranean Cauliflower Rice
- Lemony Roasted Cauliflower Risotto
- Parmesan-Crusted Cauliflower Steaks with Marinara
- Roasted Cauliflower and Farro Salad with Feta and Avocado
Craving more soups? Don’t miss the other eight soup recipes in Love Real Food! You’ll also find quite a few more soups here on the blog.
Creamy Roasted Cauliflower Soup
This cauliflower soup recipe is the best! Roasted cauliflower makes it taste amazing, and a little butter (instead of cream) makes it luxuriously creamy. Recipe yields 4 bowls of soup.
Ingredients
- 1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into bite-size florets
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- Fine sea salt
- 1 medium red onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or more if needed
- Scant ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- For garnish: 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, chives and/or green onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. If desired, line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup.
- On the baking sheet, toss the cauliflower with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until lightly and evenly coated in oil. Arrange the cauliflower in a single layer and sprinkle lightly with salt. Bake until the cauliflower is tender and caramelized on the edges, 25 to 35 minutes, tossing halfway.
- Once the cauliflower is almost done, in a Dutch oven or soup pot, warm the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and turning translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds, then add the broth.
- Reserve 4 of the prettiest roasted cauliflower florets for garnish. Then transfer the remaining cauliflower to the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce the heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes, to give the flavors time to meld.
- Once the soup is done cooking, remove the pot from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes. Then, carefully transfer the hot soup to a blender, working in batches if necessary. (Do not fill past the maximum fill line or the soup could overflow!)
- Add the butter and blend until smooth. Add the lemon juice and nutmeg and blend again. Add additional salt, to taste (I usually add another ¼ to ¾ teaspoon, depending on the broth). This soup tastes amazing once it’s properly salted! You can also a little more lemon juice, if it needs more zing. Blend again.
- Top individual bowls of soup with 1 roasted cauliflower floret and a sprinkle of chopped parsley, green onion and/or chives. This soup keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for about four days, or for several months in the freezer.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my cookbook, Love Real Food.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Use cashews instead of butter. Soak ¼ cup cashews for 4 hours, then drain and rinse them (if you have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix or Blendtec, you can skip this). Add the cashews when you would add the butter.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Absolutely delish! I added 2 sticks of chopped celery and as I didn’t have red onion used a white onion. Decorated with chopped green onion. As I enjoy spicy – added a few drops of hot sauce to my bowl. My husband thoroughly enjoyed too,.
Simple and delicious recipe! It’s now a favorite of mine!
Thank you!
Was delicious! The only change I would make is double it…my family was licking the bowl! Thank you!
Pretty good, but regretted putting in lemon juice at all let alone 1tbsp. Added lots of cheese and saved it. Would make again but without lemon juice
I followed exactly as directed. I think I am a good cook but for some reason I had to add cheese and hot sauce to give it something. It is a bland recipe. Sorry, it is difficult to find a good cauliflower recipe. I give you an A for trying and appreciate the recipe. My husband said it needs something.
Mmmmmm. Awesome roasted flavor. And I added a bit of home made bacon bits with hotels pork jowl. Omg so good ty
I’m happy you loved it, Carolyn! Thank you for your review.
This was SO GOOD! I used to say that I don’t particularly like cauliflower, but this soup changed my mind! My blender couldn’t make it completely smooth so it had a few tiny cauliflower chunks, but it hardly mattered because the rest of it was just so creamy and delicious! I used cashews soaked in water for about 6 hours in place of butter.
Vitamix blender has issues with teflon ending up in your food. Google it.
This soup is amazing! Yummy! I didn’t have vegetable broth and used Better than Bouillon roasted chicken base! Other than that I followed the recipe exactly. I will be making this again. Can’t wait to serve it to friends!
I originally bought a head of cauliflower to cut into pieces for snacking. Then I popped a crown over the weekend and chewing became problematic! I found your recipe and made it this morning so I could make good use of the cauliflower AND have something easy to eat until I can see the dentist for repairs. It smelled WONDERFUL while it was simmering. I just blended it…it’s AMAZING! And that’s after I realized that I forgot the butter…DOH! Even without the butter, it’s so rich and creamy…allowing the cauliflower and onions to caramelize makes a HUGE difference. It give it an earthy, deep flavor that simply simmering the cauliflower until it was soft wouldn’t do.
Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear that, but I’m happy you were able to find this soup to enjoy. I hope everything works out!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.. it is truly delicious. I through in some cashews when blending.. so so creamy!
I made this for a family of six. One of the kids will not touch vegetables. Everyone wanted seconds. Yummmm!
Wonderful depth of flavor and very easy to make. I used an immersion blender – just takes a little longer. Delicious with a slice of toasted sourdough bread. I will add this to my favorite soups list.
Thank you for sharing, Laura!
Y’know, I don’t belong to any cooking site, I just Google for the recipes of the things in which I am interested. Curiously, so often it is YOUR recipes that catch my eye, and I have yet to be disappointed. Very good work.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this soup. So full of flavour and so creamy. I have been pulling recipes from this site for many years, and every single one has been delicious and on point!! Thank you :) :)
LOVE THIS!!
I just finished it and am having a bowl. It is soo soo good. I did put double the garlic in but everything else stayed the same! I also wanna say everything in this coated me about 10$ so great for budget friendly. The taste is so good. I really am looking forward to making it again!
I love it! Thank you for sharing, Annie.
Sodium content is so high! Any suggestions to greatly reduce it. I’ll omit the salt and use unsalted veggie Broth
I just can say” heaven in the mouth” Thank you for this delicious amazing soup.
This recipe is phenomenal!! An instant favorite that we’ll be making over and over again!
:)
Thank you for this simple and delicious recipe . I make it all of the time . Some times I roast carrots with the cauliflower and add it to the soup .
I made this soup and it was fantastic! I topped it off with some small pieces of bacon and chives and wow!
This tastes really great!I didn’t keep it vegetarian bc all I had was chicken stock. I also topped it with some cooked bacon. The saltiness of the bacon brought out more of the soups flavor. I’m glad I found a Cauliflower recipe that I will continue to use.
Yummy!! Tried this last night with cauliflower I had blanched & frozen from harvesting & instead of roasting fried in frying pan with a little butter to brown, 3mins each side This reduced time to 6 mins instead of 30mins roasting & worked really well. Most definitely doing this recipe again , thank you
You’re welcome, Caro! I’m glad you loved it.
Hands down the best soup I’ve ever made. Delicious!
This soup is Absolutely amazing, delicious yet simple and the best part is you don’t have to fix with a Roux for thicker because the collie flower thickens it naturally. My family have made this multiple times and have made slight tweaks hear and there (I preferred making this with home made chicken stock because that makes everything better!) try this soup with sourdough grilled cheese!
I added a little bit of curry powder while sauteeing the onions and roasted the garlic with the cauliflower. Also added cashew nuts as suggested. This was the most delicious and unexpectedly creamy soup I’ve ever eaten! Thank you!
Thank you for sharing! Curry would take this up a level. I love it!
Absolutely Beautiful. I didn’t add butter as the Cauliflower was rich enough. Thanks so much. Simple yet amazing
This is the best cauliflower soup I have ever made! It is simple and yet incredibly delicious:) I cannot thank you more for sharing this recipe!
Just made this soup and it was fantastic. I just had my wisdom teeth out and I need soft/mushy/liquidy type foods. My problem? I am diabetic and connotes consume grains, potatoes, rice, legumes or dairy without my blood sugar skyrocketing. This recipe was perfect. It was rich and creamy without having to add anything that would give me a blood sugar spike. I used what I had everything in the pantry and fridge so chicken broth instead of vegetable broth. I also roasted a head of garlic and used that instead of sautéing it. Roasting the cauliflower was brilliant! Thanks for the recipe!
I’m not a cauliflower fan but this is actually yummy! Wouldn’t change a thing.
Great recipe to use up a head of cauliflower that was lingering in the fridge. I roasted the onions and garlic along with the cauliflower which made this recipe even easier and tastier.
Your Roasted Cauliflower & Roasted Pumpkin soup recipes have changed my life! They were absolutely delicious and so easy to make!!I kept the skin on my pumpkin when I used my hand held blender to blitz (used a jap pumpkin from Australia)and worked fine. Excited to try more of your recipes xx
HOLY WOW!!!!!!!! This recipe is SO GOOD. This has got me down and dreading cooking and this recipe really reignited that for me again! I had no nutmeg but used nutritional yeast and squeezed a full (small) lemon in. OH MY GOD. So zesty, savory, yum yum yum yum! Thank you!!!!
My kitchen’s a mess, my sink is full of dishes, and I’m well on my way to a food coma, but it was worth it. This is one of the best soups I’ve ever made.
That sounds delicious. Can it be frozen for later?
Hi Edith! Yes, this one works well frozen.
SOOOOO GREAT!!! I’m doing a gut cleanse so just left out the butter/cashews (too lazy) and replaced the red onion with leek and it was still amazing! That lemon juice really did just kick it up that extra notch. Will definitely be making this one again.
Absolutely delicious. So good. Thank you for the receipe!
Loved this soup!! I have tried many cauliflower soups and this one is the best so far. I did not add the butter and yet it was perfectly smooth and creamy in a non-fancy blender. We thought that the garnish of parley and scallions completed the soup. What a delicious combination. We must eat a lot because this was only enough for 3 servings despite using a massive cauliflower head and serving bread. Thank you for another great recipe!
So tasty and creamy.
Winner winner
Wonderful, Deb! Thanks for letting me know you loved this one.
I wanted to make the roasted cauliflower soup BUT as a 1st time try you have not indicted how much butterer is appropriate and how much vegetable stock to use. Also I see from you video that you used a red onion, I would have used white onion – I was frustrated as I did not think your written instructions very clear.
Hi , this is the first time I have made this recipe .I love these ingredients .
It is very wholesome and easy to make.
I definitely will make it my no.1 cauliflower soup from now on. I didn’t alter the recipe.I make soups regularly , as I love vegetables. I was so pleased it had no cream, as I am lactose intolerant.
Thank you very much. Suzanne .
ps. I am going to like your instagram page & post the recipe on Facebook.
Loved my cauliflower soup, topped with green onions ….lovely and creamy. Will definitely have this in my favourites!
Hey Kate
Thanks for the receipe, everyone here loved it. 3rd time around added leek into the mix, really good. Thanks for the inspiration first time really in the kitchen.
G
Delicious! Easy, satisfying and a real crowd pleaser. Have made it a few times and it’s definitely a keeper. Thank you!
Delicious,added a little Parmesan for garnish,will make again
My first time making this, used chicken stock as i didn’t have vege stock. Did the dairy free version by blending in well-soaked raw cashews. Hubs absolutely loved it!
I am not sure why all the great reviews. I made this recipe exactly as stated, but it didn’t have much flavor. I added cayenne pepper and white pepper along with some cheese. After eating 1/2 a bowl, the dog got the rest of it
I absolutely love this recipe! Favorite soup ever! I added a splash of Chardonnay to deglaze the onions and garlic, double the garlic and Parmesan rind to give it a richer flavor!
I love your creativity, Tori! Thanks for taking the time to review and share how you made this one fit your tastes.
Fantastic soup didnt have veggie stock I used chicken the butter and lemon really finished it off
This recipe turned out great! I used chicken broth, doubled the garlic and it was heavenly. The cauliflower browned so nicely in the oven which gave the soup a beautiful roasted flavour! Definitely will make it again!
I have a very strict no added salt diet, as do a lot of people. I’d love to make it and vary the flavour profile to mask the lack of salt. I find a little heat helps so the curry comment are good to see. Do you have any other suggestions? Make a batch, separate mine and add salt? Anything. Also I’d like to serve small amount cold or likewise as an amuse Boucher. Do you think this would work?
Hi Michael, sorry to not be of more help! You could add curry to help as noted. Or another spice of your liking.
Thank you for sharing the recipe, it turned out beautiful.
Joanne
Second time I’ve made this and it’s great! Thanks for sharing.
Tasted delicious. I roasted the onion and garlic with the cauliflower too. Chives from the garden for garnish – many thanks!