Creamy Roasted Buffalo Cauliflower Soup Vegan
This gloriously zesty soup harnesses the robust warmth of Buffalo sauce to put a new spin on cold weather comfort food. Wholesome plant-based ingredients harmonize with tangy seasonings resulting in a surprisingly cheesy flavor experience. The rich cashew cream topping adds a silky contrasting layer that's customizable. Add as little or as much cashew cream as you like, or use store bought vegan sour cream instead.
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
- large soup pot (5 to 7 quarts is ideal)
- blender (for making cashew cream)
- Immersion Blender (for blitzing soup)
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw cashews* (optional for cashew cream)
- 1 large lemon (divided in half)
- 24 oz cauliflower florets (or florets from 1 large cauliflower)
- ½ cup vegan Buffalo sauce (divided)
- 6 cups vegetable stock (divided)
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 2 large celery stalks, sliced (1 to 1½ cup)
- 1 medium carrot, sliced (about ½ cup)
- 4 to 8 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed** (about 1 lb)
- 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ cup thinly sliced green onions or minced fresh parsley (optional for garnish)
Instructions
Make Lemony Cashew Cream (optional)
- Place cashews in a small bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside for at least 20 minutes to soak (I like to do this before anything and make the soup while the cashews are soaking, proceeding to the next step while the soup is in the simmering phase).
- Strain cashews and place them in a bowl of a blender. Add ⅓ cup of fresh water, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Process until smooth. Taste the cashew cream to see if you want to add a little more lemon juice or salt. You can also add more water if you prefer a thinner cashew cream. Pulse a couple of more times if you add anything. Set aside.
Prepare Roasted Cauliflower Florets with Buffalo Sauce
- Preheat oven to 400 ℉ and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place cauliflower florets on top of the parchment paper lined baking sheet and pour ¼ cup of Buffalo sauce over the florets. Carefully toss the florets so that they are evenly coated in the sauce and spread in a single layer.
- Bake in the preheated 400 ℉ oven for 20 to 25 minutes until cauliflower is tender and slightly crispy. Set aside.
Soup Preparation
- Pour 2 tablespoons of vegetable stock into a large soup pot and bring to a rolling boil over high heat, keeping more stock close at hand. Add sliced onions to pot, lower heat to medium-high, and sauté for about 7 minutes until onions become translucent and slightly golden, adding a little bit of stock at a time, as needed, to keep them from burning and/or sticking.
- To the onions in the pot, add the celery, carrots and garlic. Sauté for an additional 6 to 8 minutes until all vegetables are tender. If necessary, you can continue to add little bits of stock if necessary to prevent sticking.
- Add the cubed potatoes to the pot and sauté with the rest of the vegetables for another 2 or 3 minutes.
- Now add all remaining vegetable stock to the pot. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes until potatoes are very soft.
- Add roasted cauliflower florets, nutritional yeast, 2 tablespoons of Buffalo sauce and smoked paprika and continue simmering for another 10 minutes.
- Turn off heat and use an immersion blender to process until smooth.
- Add the juice of one half lemon and blend. Taste soup and decide if you need to add salt or a little bit more Buffalo sauce (I prefer to drizzle a little Buffalo sauce on soup after it's been served).
Serving Suggestions
- Top each bowl of soup with a spoonful of lemony cashew cream, a few drops of remaining Buffalo sauce and a sprinkling of sliced green onions or minced fresh parsley.
Notes
*Whole cashews or cashew pieces are both fine, but pieces are a little better because they get soft more quickly when soaked.
**It's not absolutely necessary to peel well washed potatoes but your soup will have a different look when you don't peel the potatoes.
Tried this recipe? Let me know how it was!