4-Ingredient Roasted Cauliflower Soup Recipe

If a perfect food exists, it’s probably soup.

Soup is nourishing, filling, hydrating, and delicious. It’s the perfect one-pot meal and has been since long before “one-pot meals” existed. Anything can be soup, and soup can be almost anything: chunky, creamy, meaty, veggie-based, thick, thin, you name it. Soup overflows any boundaries we try to erect around it.

However, I have one very small bone to pick with soup: So. Much. Chopping. When I have all the time in the world, I love standing at the counter chopping vegetables, but that is so rarely my reality. So, I prioritize soups that are low-maintenance.

This cauliflower soup is one of my favorites for that very reason—chuck some cauliflower and onion in the oven to roast, then blend them with stock until smooth. You can even start with precut cauliflower if that’s what it takes.

This soup happens to be vegetarian and dairy-free, but it’s rich and creamy with that stick-to-the-ribs quality that all the best soups have. Given how few ingredients you need to make it, it’s remarkably flavorful thanks to the roasting process, which browns the cauliflower and onions.

I serve this soup with a drizzle of smoked paprika oil (just olive oil and smoked paprika stirred together—nothin’ fancy), which is a beautiful contrast to the beige soup, but you could go many different ways: a drizzle of plain olive oil, chili oil, scoops of pesto or chimichurri, chili crisp, croutons, or a handful of shredded cheddar and crispy bacon.

Tips for Making My 4-Ingredient Soup

• Use fresh cauliflower: I love frozen vegetables for their ease, but they don’t belong in this soup. Frozen cauliflower exudes a lot of water during roasting, which prevents it from browning.
• Blend safely: If you use a countertop blender like a Vitamix or Nutribullet to blend the soup, take care not to burn yourself. Don’t overfill the blender, make sure the lid is attached well and remove the center lid so that steam can escape, place a kitchen towel over the top, and start the blender on low speed, gradually working up to high speed.
• Easier cleanup: I always lay down a sheet of parchment paper on my baking sheet before roasting vegetables. You’ll still have to give the pan a light wash, but it will be much less greasy.

How To Make My 4-Ingredient Roasted Cauliflower Soup

For  about 6 cups or 4 servings, you’ll need:

• 1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), trimmed and cut into florets
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced, or 1 leek halved lengthwise, well cleaned, and sliced
• 4 large, unpeeled garlic cloves, optional
• 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• Salt, to taste
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper if you have it.

Directly on the sheet pan, toss together the cauliflower, onion or leek, and optional garlic cloves with 3 tablespoons of olive oil until coated, then spread out the vegetables in a single layer. Roast until the edges of the florets are well-browned, about 30 minutes.

Transfer the roasted vegetables to a large saucepan (if you used garlic, peel the cloves before adding them) and add the stock. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat, then turn off the heat.

Use a hand blender to purée the soup until very smooth, or transfer the soup to a countertop blender and carefully blend. Taste and season with salt.

Stir together the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and smoked paprika in a small bowl. Serve the soup piping hot with a drizzle of the paprika oil.