Purple Cauliflower Soup

I'm always looking for new fruits and vegetables at the local shops and love when I stumble across something that's a little bit out of the ordinary. The purple cauliflower I found this week certainly was a bit different.

Like a little kid, I was attracted to the bright pinky purple colour. Not knowing if it was going to taste any different to the regular variety of cauliflower, I just knew I had to buy it and turn it into purple soup!

I did a bit of research into purple cauliflowers to find out about them and apparently they are actually one of four naturally occurring coloured cauliflowers. White is the regular colour, but purple, green and orange are also available. The colours come from small amounts of other minerals and elements. Purple contains an antioxidant called anthocyanin, which is also present in red cabbage and red wine. As soon as I read this, I knew I'd like it!

The orange variety contains beta carotene, also found in carrots, and the green variety can be either a hybrid of broccoli and cauliflower, which are both from the same family, or a mutant form of white cauliflower that produces chlorophyll. The science nerd in me found this really interesting!

I didn't want to do anything too fancy with my purple cauliflower as I wanted it's beautiful colour to come through. The soup was perfect after a big weekend of eating and drinking and great on a cold night with some fresh crusty bread. There was a little more sweetness and a slight nuttiness to the flavour, which was just delicious. I garnished mine with some creme fraiche and dill, that was left over from the weekend, but you could use cream or parsley, if you had it. A few toasted macadamia nuts would give a wonderful crunch too.

If you stumble across coloured cauliflower, make sure you buy it and have a go at creating something delicious. I'll definitely be eating my coloured veggies from now on!

Purple Cauliflower Soup

1 purple cauliflower, outer leaves removed, stem and florets chopped into large pieces

A drizzle of olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 onion, chopped

6 cups of chicken or vegie stock

Salt and pepper to taste.

Creme fraiche and dill to garnish

Heat a drizzle of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.

Add the garlic and onion and cook until starting to soften, but not brown.

Add the cauliflower and stir to coat in the oil. Cook for 5 minutes, or until it just starts to soften.

Add the stock, bring to the boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the cauliflower is soft.

Allow to cool slightly, then blitz with a stick blender into a smooth soup. Season to taste.

Serve the beautiful purple soup with a drizzle of creme fraiche, a sprinkling of dill sprigs and some fresh crusty bread or toast.

Enjoy!

Spicy Cauliflower Soup

After last week's beautiful 'touch of spring' weather, it's now back to being cold and wet. Typical Melbourne!

To warm me up and make the most of some beautiful fresh bread I bought on the weekend, a big bowl of steaming soup was in order.

I came across this recipe in the most recent Gourmet Traveller magazine, but I've simplified it a bit and changed a few things. I love cauliflower soup and this version adds a bit of extra flavour with the spices and lemon juice. It was lovely and fresh and definitely warming.

If you don't like things too spicy, use a sweet paprika, rather than hot. Add the lemon juice to taste too. Depending on the size of your lemon, you might want to add more or less. I liked it with a little bit more, but my husband found it a little too lemony. The crispy cauliflower on top adds a nice texture and looks pretty too.

Make the most of soup weather while you can!

Spicy Cauliflower Soup

2 Tbs butter

1 whole cauliflower, outer leaves removed, cut into florets

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

4 sprigs of thyme

1 Tbs hot paprika

1 lemon - juice and finely grated rind

1 onion, finely chopped

6 cups of chicken stock

Chopped dill to garnish

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower, 2 cloves of garlic, thyme, paprika and lemon rind. Season to taste.

Melt the 1 Tbs butter in the microwave, then tip into the bowl and stir to combine and coat the cauliflower in the spices and butter.

Tip the whole lot onto a large baking tray and bake in the oven for about 40 mins, or until the cauliflower is soft and browned. Stir every so often to stop it sticking and burning.

Remove from the oven.

Reserve about 1/2 a cup of the small florets for a garnish.

In a large saucepan, melt the remaining butter and fry the onion and garlic over medium heat until starting to soften.

Add the stock and bring to the boil.

Tip in the cauliflower mixture, return to the boil and simmer for 15 mins or until the cauliflower is very soft.

Allow to cool slightly, then blitz with a stick blender until smooth. 

Season to taste, add the lemon juice and more stock or water if you find it too thick.

To serve, ladle the hot soup into bowls and top with the reserved cauliflower and a sprinkling of dill sprigs.

Enjoy!

Roasted Pumpkin And Capsicum Soup

Given how cold the weather is in Melbourne at the moment, I couldn't go past making some warming soup with the giant pumpkin from our garden. 

I wanted to try something a little bit different to the usual, so thought that adding some roasted red capsicum to the mix would create some extra sweetness. It certainly did add sweetness and that beautiful charred flavour you get from roasting capsicum. As well as the flavour, the soup turned out a lovely orangey red colour. Perfect to warm you up!

To add a bit of crunch and texture, I decided to top the soup with some chopped parsley and chopped roasted macadamia nuts. Delicious!

I hope you ejoy this simple bowl of comfort in the cold weather too.

Roasted Pumpkin And Capsicum Soup

1.2kg pumpkin, skin and seeds removed and chopped (you want about 1kg of flesh)

2 red capsicums, halved lengthways, seeds and membranes removed

1 large brown onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

A drizzle of olive oil

1 litre of chicken or vegetable stock

1/4 cup macadamia nuts

A handful of parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Place pumpkin and capsicum in a baking tray and drizzle with oil.

Roast until the pumpkin is soft and the skin on the capsicum is blackened and blistered. This will take about 45 minutes. If the capsicum seems to be burning, remove it from the oven before the pumpkin.

When cool enough to handle, peel the blackened skin from the capsicum.

Meanwhile, place the macadamia nuts in a small oven tray and dry roast for 5 to 10 minutes, shaking the tray every so often to stop them burning. Remove from the oven when they are golden brown.

Allow the nuts to cool  then coarsely chop and set aside.

Heat another drizzle of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and cook onion and garlic until softened.

Add the roasted vegies and cook for another couple of minutes.

Add the stock, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes or until the pumpkin is very soft.

Allow to cool slightly, then blitz with a stick blender until smooth. Season to taste and add extra stock if the soup is a little bit thick.

Serve steaming bowls of the soup topped with a sprinkling of parsley and macadamia nuts.

Enjoy!

Roasted Cauliflower And Mushroom Soup

Soup really is such a comforting meal, isn't it? It's like being wrapped up in a warm blanket when you're cold or sick and makes you feel so much better.

When the weather gets cold, I love to make all sorts of types of soups. Chunky, hearty ones with lots of meat and vegetables, or smooth pureed soups with a touch of cream. Either way, you need some beautiful fresh bread or toast to go with it to mop up the last dregs of deliciousness!

This week I was inspired to make a roasted cauliflower and mushroom soup. Normally I wouldn't bother pre-roasting the vegetables, but it does bring out so much more flavour in the vegetables. If you have the time, it really is worth the effort. While you're roasting the vegetables, throw a few  hazelnuts on to roast for the topping too. They add a nice crunch when you're eating the soup and the infused oil adds an extra nuttiness. If you don't want to add the nuts, you don't have to, but I like the extra dimension it adds to the smooth soup.

Roasted Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup

1/2 cauliflower, outer leaves removed, cut into florets
4  large swiss brown mushrooms
1 onion, cut into 8 wedges
2 whole cloves of garlic
A good drizzle of olive oil
6 cups vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup hazelnuts
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup cream

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees.
Place cauliflower, mushrooms, onion and garlic on a baking tray.
Drizzle generously with oil and season with salt and pepper.
Bake for 30 mins or until the cauliflower is soft and the edges are slightly charred. Set aside to cool a little.
Place hazelnuts on a separate tray and roast for 10 minutes or until the skins start to split.
Immediately tip onto a clean tea towel and rub to remove the skins.
Place hazelnuts and 1/4 cup oil in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat and allow the oil to infuse for 1 hour.

Heat vegetable stock in a large saucepan until simmering.
Add the roasted vegetables and bring back to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes for the flavour to infuse.
Cool slightly, then puree with a stick blender. Season to taste, adding extra stock if you find it too thick.
Just before serving, stir through the cream.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and then top with a spoonful of the roasted hazelnuts and a drizzle of the infused oil.

Enjoy!

Carrot Soup With Roasted Hazelnuts

As the days get shorter and the feel of autumn fills the air, it's nice to start thinking about eating soup again. Over the long, hot days of summer, soup is the last thing you want to eat. You need something light and fresh with plenty of flavour.

Yes, you can have chilled soups when it's hot, but they've never really been my thing. A small shot of gazpacho perhaps, but I've never really enjoyed a big bowl of a cold soup.

Pumpkin soup is my husbands favourite soup in the whole world! I like it too, but prefer to be a bit more creative than doing the same old thing all the time. This carrot soup was a perfect alternative. Still orange, still hearty and tasty, but with a bit of a twist. The roasted hazelnuts give an extra nuttiness and add texture. The dollop of natural yoghurt gives some acidity and creaminess. The soup is quite thick, so if you prefer, add a bit more stock or water.

I used hazelnuts which were already roasted, as I was feeling lazy and that was all that was available at the time. If you wanted to roast your own, place the nuts on a baking tray and roast in the oven at 180 degrees for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and tip onto a clean tea towel. Fold into a parcel and rub to remove the bitter skins. Allow to cool before you chop.

We devoured this soup with a beautiful fresh baguette from the local French patisserie. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Carrot Soup With Roasted Hazelnuts

A drizzle of olive oil

1kg carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

4 cups of vegetable or chicken stock

100g roasted hazelnuts

Juice of 2 lemons, or to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Chopped parsley and natural yoghurt to serve 

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large saucepan on medium heat. 

Add the onion, garlic and carrot and cook until the onion begins to soften, but does not brown.

Add the stock and half the hazelnuts, cover with a lid and simmer until the carrots are soft.

Allow to cool slightly, then blitz with a food processor or stick blender until smooth.

Stir through the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Coarsely chop the remaining hazelnuts.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls, top with a dollop of natural yoghurt and a sprinkling each of parsley and hazelnuts.