I love cauliflower. I never thought I’d ever see the day I’d say that. Cauliflower has always been one of my least favourite vegetables, I hated everything about it, from the smell to the texture and taste, but cauliflower puree instead of mashed potatoes changed all of that. And since then I’ve been experimenting with all kinds of cauliflower recipes – crispy cauliflower, cauliflower ‘rice’, cauliflower fried ‘rice’, cauliflower pizza and cheesy ‘bread’ sticks, fritters, cakes, cauliflower hash and revisiting childhood cauliflower stew and curry recipes. And with all the health benefits, Cauliflower has become the new superfood in my kitchen.
This  cauliflower chowder came together from ‘nothing in the fridge’ ingredients. You know when the fridge is almost bare and you don’t want to go to the store.
Creamy and hearty, this cauliflower chowder is almost fat free, the huge pot of soup has a total of only 2-3 tablespoons of oil. Â I didn’t have any olive oil or butter, so I very sparingly used my precious bottle of avocado oil.
There is no cream or dairy in this soup. Instead I made cauliflower puree, a cauliflower ‘milk’ of sorts, by blending cauliflower and a quick vegetable stock (NEVER use store bought stock) I also added a sautéed onion and bay leaf to add extra flavour to the cauliflower ‘milk’.
There are no potatoes in this chowder. And if you want to go completely starch free you can omit the corn or use your favourite vegetable. I used corn because it was all I had on hand.
FOR THE STOCK:
1-2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
1 onion, quartered
1-2 carrots, roughly chopped (optional)
Corn cobs
FOR THE SOUP:
1 Cauliflower
1Â onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 Bay leaves
1 cup Carrots, diced
1/2 cup Red Pepper, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons flour
3 ears of corn, cut off the cob (about 1 1/2 – 2 cups) Don’t forget to scrape down sides to get ‘milky’ bits
Vegetable stock
Salt to taste
White pepper to taste (optional)
First make the stock:
MAKE THE CAULIFLOWER ‘MILK’:
MAKE THE SOUP: