Curried Nutty Cauliflower Soup

This is one of my favourite recipes using cauliflower, Curried Nutty Cauliflower Soup. This soup combines many flavours ranging from hot, spicy, and bold - the curry and turmeric, to the sweet and nutty flavour of the cashews, with just a little hint of brightness from the citrus. The final result is (I think) a delicious thick and creamy soup with complex flavours, and without the use of any dairy, cream, gluten, and the like

What exactly is curry?  Curry is simply a dish containing spices and herbs, with fish, shellfish, meat/poultry, vegetables, or can be vegetarian; thees can be a “wet” or “dry” texture. Curry powder is a generic term for a spice blend containing ingredients such as turmeric, cumin, coriander, paprika, mustard seeds, cinnamon, red/black pepper, red chili, hot peppers, ginger, clove, cardamom, bay leaf, and fenugreek; in no specific ratio, recipe nor does it have to contain all of the above ingredients. The curry spice blends are more of a Western culture approach, as the Eastern cultures typically will make curries “on the spot” with not only taste preferences in mind, but  may also be influenced by family culture, family tastes, tradition, religious views, and of course variations by region.
 
Curry dishes are a great representation of the classic sweet and savory combination. The sweet spices found in most curry dishes such as cinnamon, cardamom, and clove pair well with the more savory spices such as turmeric, cumin, coriander, and bay leaf. The level of heat a curry will be is the result of how much/little red, black pepper or ginger is involved. Obviously the hotter curries will contain larger amounts of red chilies or red pepper/peppers, whereas the mild curry dishes may contain more ginger and black pepper.
 
This is the precise reason I love curry so much, they’re are so many different types, flavour profiles ranging from sweet to hot, variations of heat, and depths of flavor. What’s also beautiful about playing with curries in the kitchen, is it can be built upon, layer by layer simply by adding more curry powder and even mixing several different curry spice blends together. Traditionally, curries are made in this way by adding specific herbs and spices at varying times throughout the cooking process.

Not only is this a unique and scrumptious soup, but it’s also loaded with nutrition especially in the form of antioxidants from the wonderfully powerful curry and turmeric spices (more on the specifics of these later) and the cauliflower. In a nutshell, this soup contains high amounts of antioxidants, anti inflammatory compounds, vitamin C, vitamin B (B1, B6), vitamin K, iron, zinc, selenium, manganese, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, fibre, protein, and healthy fats.

I typically will store this in an air tight tupperware container in the refrigerator for up to a week, honestly it never lasts that long when I make it, it’s just too good!
 
TIPS 

• Optional // to roast 1 head and leave 1 head of cauliflower raw, but I love the depth of flavour roasting creates.
• Thickness // You may add in as little or as much liquid in the form of water or nut milk as you like; the more, the thinner the soup; the less, the thicker the soup.
• Curry blends // choose curry powders that will appeal to your tastes. They’re a variety of spice blends out there from sweet, mild, medium, hot, extra hot, Chinese Curry, African Curry, and Malaysian Curry.
  • All of the spices used in this recipe are found in your local supermarket.
• Cashews // create a nice thick, creamy, and sweet texture/flavour profile to this soup. If you’re allergic or cashews simply aren’t your cup-o-tea, then replace with another nut/seed (walnuts, almonds, etc.).

CURRIED NUTTY CAULIFLOWER SOUP
PREP TIME - 20 mins // COOK TIME - 45 mins // TOTAL TIME - 1 hour 5 mins
A delicious, creamy vegan curry cauliflower soup with cashews.
Author: Emma Olliff, Dip NT CNM
Recipe type: soup
Serves: 6+
INGREDIENTS

• 2 small heads organic cauliflower (or 1 large head)
• 500ml / 2 cups unsweetened almond milk
• ¾ cup raw cashews (preferably soaked for 1 hour)
• 125 ml / 1 cup filtered water
• 1 small sweet onion
• 2 tbsp. white miso paste
• 1 tbsp. maple syrup (sugar free use stevia or don't use at all)
• 1 tbsp. coconut oil
• 1 tbsp. hot curry seasoning (sweet, hot, mild depending on how you like it)
• 1 tsp. Garam masala (spice blend, optional)
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 juice of orange (or lemon)
• ¼ tsp. cinnamon
• 1 glove garlic
• ¼ tsp. of salt, to taste
• ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven at 170C / 350F
2. Roast cauliflower for 30 minutes or until golden brown and soft.
3. In a pan, sauté onions with coconut oil and all the spices/herbs (curry, turmeric, salt, pepper, garlic, cinnamon).
4. Pour all ingredients including roasted cauliflower into a high speed blender, food processor, or you can use an emersion blender (in a large pot).
5. Blend until thick and creamy.
6. Reheat on stove until warm/hot.
7. Garnish with fresh cilantro, basil, or rosemary.
8. Enjoy!