Because it’s “Enough Is Enough…Step Away From The Cheese” season
Do you remember that brief moment in our great nation’s history when YOLO was a totally acceptable thing to say?
“Are you really going to [insert literally INSANE thing]?”
“Yeah, YOLO.” *And then someone does the insane thing.*
Great, right? A phrase that allows you to pretty much justify any poor decision you’ve ever made, removing all guilt or responsibility?
No! Not great, guys. Awful. I know because we’ve been using YOLO a lot and surprisingly enough, its been getting dangerously out of hand. Take for example, the last 7.5 days of my life which I have survived on mostly frozen processed vegetarian junk food with a side (hunk) of cheese and a bottle of wine…
Friendly advice: When you start using YOLO as an excuse to eat more cheese, it’s intervention time.
SO I’ve been cheesing and snacking and wine-ing it up lately, in part due to Living la Vida nightlife and the occasional date-night splurging. I’m almost always over-served in a dating situation (both wine and cheese and sometimes salad bar olives) because I have zero self-control when good mood Liz is vibing.
YOLO?
SO I’m back on track because next month is February (love month) and I don’t need to be bloated AND cranky, which means I’m forcefully putting you all back on track with me. Sort of a YOLO Lite deal.
YOLO Lite-The healthier way to live only once.
Roasted Cauliflower Soup with Fresh Herbs
First of all, this is vegan but it doesn’t have to be. Also it’s vegetarian but if you don’t have fake chicken broth, use real chicken broth. I’m here to feed you and help you get YOLO Lite, no matter your meat preferences.
STEP 1:
Gather your ingredients (ugh, work before the work but honestly helpful). Roast the veggies to create flavor and have a pre-soup glass of wine. It’s part of the recipe!
STEP 2:
Find an avocado in the random bowl of fruits on your counter and make sure it’s the *perfect* ripeness (good luck) and slice. You don’t do this in step 1 because it would be brown and weird by this time.
STEP 3:
Simmer the roasted cauliflower and garlic in the broth of your choice and feel free to season now or later. Or both.
I’d like to note that when I created this recipe I knew very little about actually cooking. Now that I have assisted in developing 3 major cookbooks and worked in the industry for 10 years, I know more. Don’t use fresh rosemary in the pot. It’s spiny and doesn’t do as much for flavor as dried here. Use dried herb blend that contains rosemary or add the rosemary to an herb satchel or tie with food-safe string. Let it simmer, then remove!
Garnish with a hefty drizzle of olive oil and more herbs, toasted pine nuts…you get the picture. When it comes to healthy fats, YOLO garnishing is acceptable. Not even the lite kind.
Roasted Cauliflower Soup with Fresh Thyme
Light and brothy roasted cauliflower soup that's blended within an inch of it's life (in a good way)
Ingredients
- 1 head Cauliflower, broken into florets
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil + 1 tbsp for garnish
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 Medium Avocado
- 4 cups Chicken Broth (vegan option linked)
- 1/2 c. Cashew Milk, Unsweetened (or milk of your choice)
- 1 teaspoon Thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
- 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 1/4 cup Toasted Pine Nuts, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment.
- Arrange the cauliflower and peeled garlic cloves on the prepared sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast for approximately 25 minutes, tossing once to cook evenly.
- Once tender add the broth, roasted cauliflower, and garlic to a medium pot and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat until the cauliflower is soft, about 10 minutes.
- For a chunky soup, laddle about half of the soup into a blender cup along with the almond milk and avocado, and puree. Add back to the stockpot and add thyme, italian seasoning, and smoked paprika. Heat over medium until everything is nice and hot. Alternately, you can use an immersion blender to save time + dishes!
- For a silky smooth soup, transfer the soup, avocado, and almond milk to a blender cup and puree until smooth, being careful to vent the lid so the steam doesn't build. Return the soup to the pot and season with thyme, Italian herbs, and smoked paprika and bring to a light simmer to heat through.
- Garnish with fresh thyme and toasted pine nuts and drizzle with olive oil. If you aren't a vegan...you're gonna want to top that with some shaved Parmesan Cheese (just sayin).
Notes
Feel free to adapt this recipe to your needs using real cream and traditional chicken broth. The measurements would be the same!
I feel lighter and healthier already. Could be because of this soup or because I didn’t bake three batches of donuts this week…who really knows?
I misplaced the recipe card for this I printed long ago and have been craving this soup. I can’t find the recipe on your site, is there somewhere else I can get it?
I’ve just realized that the recipe card has somehow been deleted!! Technology… 🙁 I will work on getting it back up asap!
Good news, Lisa. It’s back! Thanks for pointing that out to me!
YOLO? Yo reached a new Lo, Liz. 🙂
Yes Paul! YOLO lite is more like it though. I’m of the “everything in moderation” camp. Except for carbs…of course 😉 jk…sort of…
Ahhh I see. So it’s really YOLOL. I can get on that train!
Who is the brilliant person who invented the term Yolo lite? Genius! This soup looks great. I love your cauliflower recipes. Can’t wait to try it!