Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup
Flavored with rich cheese & cumin, then dotted with chopped red pepper & carrot chunks, this Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup tastes as good as it looks.
When I made my new Healthier Broccoli Cheese Soup a couple weeks ago, I didn’t realize I was starting a trend. Requests for more came fast and furious–and each new batch disappeared even faster. Then, far too soon, the broccoli was gone.
Time for something similar, but with a character all its own–Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup.
Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup
In the back of my mind, was a beautiful soup I cut from a magazine years ago. White as the driven snow, it turned out lovely — but had the flavor appeal of paste. So my new goal was to do a nice white soup — that we actually wanted to eat. Accented with some nice reds and oranges from carrots and red pepper.
Eat a rainbow.
Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup from above
I based the recipe on my broccoli cheese soup, but changed up the spices to keep it pale colored. So, turmeric and Dijon mustard became cumin and dry mustard. Orange cheddar gave way to pale fontina. (You can also use monterey jack or another white melting cheese.) And this time I did some pureeing to make the body of the soup more opaque. 
The new Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup was a success and is now warming our souls. Important now, as winter alternatively freezes us and gives us us tantalizing glimpses of spring to come.
But a perfect reason to eat more soup!
A bite of Cheesy Cauliflower Confetti Soup
- 2 T butter or oil
- 1 small onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 cups chopped cauliflower (about 1 head)
- 5 c vegetable broth (or chicken)
- 1 red pepper, cut into ¼ inch cubes
- 1 cup carrot shreds (half a 10 ounce bag), chopped into shorter pieces
- 1 cup half and half
- 2 cups grated fontina cheese (or other good melting cheese)
- salt to taste (my broth was unsalted, so I added quite a bit)
- Melt butter in large saucepan. Add onion and garlic and sauté until tender. Stir in mustard, cayenne and cumin.
- Add flour and stir until completely combined. Add broth slowly, a half cup to a cup at a time, whisking to keep flour lumps from forming.
- When flour is incorporated bring back to a boil, add cauliflower and stir until slightly thickened and cauliflower is tender. Using a standard or immersion blender, puree some of the cauliflower until it is a consistency you like (I puree half to 2/3).
- Add carrots and red pepper and simmer until tender, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in half and half, then add cheese in handfuls, stirring to melt. Taste and adjust salt.
- Serve warm.
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Broccoli cheddar soup is a staple in our house. I’ll have to give the cauliflower version a try!
ooh, fontina! what a great choice! this looks so satisfying and delicious, and i’m always game for an alliterative name! 🙂
I really like cauliflower cheese soup and the carrot and pepper is such a good way of adding a bit of colour.
This soup looks delicious! I love how the red colour pops out of the soup!
I’m going to try that, Inger. It looks delicious!
I have never thought in putting together cauliflower and cheese in soup…sounds and looks delicious Inger. Thanks for the recipe!
I hope you are having a nice week 🙂
This looks and sounds absolutely delicious! We have been in a real Collie flower mood lately, and are eating it every way possible! Tomorrow, I making Collie flower saffron soup – a request from a friend – but the next soup I make will be yours!
I love cauliflower!!
Such a beautiful soup Inger, I can only imagine how good this taste. Looks delicious!