Cauliflower & Cheese Soup
It’s definately soup day today! The sun may be out but dont be fooled into thinking it’s spring, the temperature is touching 4 degrees in Hertfordshire today and thus demands soup to warm up the cockles. Would someone please tell where the cockles can be found on the human anatomy!! It’s a northern expression that sounds great but what are cockles ?
I had this soup for supper yesterday and thought of a dear customer who is confined to a pureed food diet for the time being. I thought of her instantly as she described her pain and dedicate this recipe to her.
Cauliflower & Cheese Soup
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 Cauliflower – Florets separated and cut down if very large pieces
4 or 5 charlotte potatoes – peeled and cut in half
1.25 litres of vegetable stock
4 sticks of celery – finely diced into ½ cm cubes
5 bay leaves
25g unsalted butter
1 tsp salt or to taste
5 black peppercorns fresh or dried, add in whole
50 g cheddar cheese or Manchego cheese
Splash double cream or crème fraise
Cooking Instructions
In a large pan, melt the butter then add the bay leaves, celery, and black peppercorns garlic and cook for 15 minutes without colouring but softened. Now add the cauliflower and potatoes and cook for a further 15 minutes, stirring gently from time to time.
Now add the stock and bring to the boil. Once boiling, turn down to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
Remove from the heat and liquidise the soup very gently; or if you prefer a little more texture then use a potato masher to mash the solid vegetables.
Return to the heat; now add the cheese and cream and check the seasoning after the cheese has disintegrated (cheese can be salty and will therefore add its own seasoning). Sprinkle a little cheese on top and grill for a few minutes to develop a little crust … garnish with a few strands of rocket if desired or trying to show off your culinary skills to your family and friends …..
Serve with some fresh crusty bread - enjoy
Cooks tip 1: Use broccoli instead of cauliflower if desired
Cooks tip 2: Manchego Cheese or stilton cheese is delightful
Health tips 1: Cauliflower is from the same family as broccoli. It is rich in folate, vitamin C, vitamin E and beta-carotene.
Folate helps in making and stimulating blood; Folate is also essential for growth of body tissues and can prevent severe diseases like cancer and heart disease. Vitamin C, acts as anti-oxidant; Vitamin E and beta-carotene, makes our immune system strong.
Recipe by Kumud Gandhi – copyrights to The Cooking Academy Cookery school
