Cream of cauliflower soup with a cheese crouton
The one soup in this book that hospitals genuinely disagree on
Doubles well in a wider pan. Freezes in individual portions for up to three months, without the crouton, which is best made fresh.
Cauliflower splits opinion between the trusts more than almost anything else on the amber list. The leaflet this book follows allows it, cooked to complete softness and then sieved smooth, while others leave it off entirely on the general principle that brassicas cause wind. Cooked this way, florets only, no stalk, simmered until a knife meets no resistance and then blended and pushed hard through a sieve, it turns into something genuinely delicate, ivory-pale and faintly sweet. The crouton on top is not decoration. A cube of crustless white bread fried until crisp, topped with melted Cheddar, gives the spoon something to catch on the way down.
Ingredients
Contains: Gluten, Milk, Celery
- 400 gcauliflower florets, trimmed to florets only, stalk discarded
- 200 gpotato, peeled and diced
- 700 mlclear vegetable stock, strained clear, or a good cube
- 15 gunsalted butter
- 2 slicewhite bread, crusts removed, cut into small cubes
- 100 mldouble cream
- 60 gCheddar, grated
- salt
Method
Put the cauliflower florets, potato and stock in a medium saucepan, bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, until both are completely soft.
While the soup cooks, melt the butter in a small frying pan and fry the bread cubes for 3 to 4 minutes, turning often, until golden and crisp on every side. Set aside.
Blend the soup completely smooth, then push it through a fine sieve into a clean pan, pressing well so nothing fibrous gets through.
Stir in the cream and warm through gently, then season with salt.
Tip the croutons onto a small baking tray, scatter the Cheddar over them and grill for a minute or two, until the cheese has melted. Float them on top of each bowl just before serving.
Watch-points
- Use cauliflower florets only, with the stalk cut away and discarded. The stalk stays stringy even when the head is soft.
- Cook the cauliflower and potato until fully soft, then blend and push the soup through a sieve so no fibre survives.
- Peel the potato before it goes in.
- Use bread with the crusts cut off for the crouton.
- Use a clear, strained stock with no vegetable pieces of its own.
Some hospitals allow cauliflower cooked soft; others list it as a food to avoid altogether. The leaflet this book follows allows it, cooked soft and sieved smooth. Leave it out if you have been told to, and use an extra 200 g of potato in its place.
Stoma note: Cauliflower can cause wind for some people even when it is cooked soft and sieved, in the same way any brassica can. Leave it out, as above, if that has been a problem for you before.
Make it more nourishing
- Stir in an extra 50 ml of cream.
- Whisk 2 tablespoons of skimmed milk powder into the stock before it goes in.
- Use 90 g of Cheddar on the croutons instead of 60 g, and an extra 10 g of butter in the frying pan.
Swaps
- Instead of cauliflower, use broccoli florets, prepared the same way
- the same texture and the same rule applies, florets only, cooked soft, sieved
- Instead of Cheddar, use Gruyère
- melts a little more smoothly on the crouton