Satisfy your craving for a cozy, warm soup with this thick and creamy vegan cauliflower soup. It comes together in 45 minutes and is loaded with veggies. This delicious soup is a perfect addition to any meal, or can be enjoyed alone, and made ahead of time!
Note: This recipe was originally published on October 23, 2016. Since then, it’s been freshened up with new pictures, commentary, and made even more delicious!
If you love creamy soups but trying to skip the cream, you're going to love this vegan cauliflower soup recipe. Here are just a few reasons:
- Simple ingredients. This simple cauliflower soup only calls for a few, whole ingredients.
- Loaded with veggies. Even if you're not a big fan of cauliflower, you'll be amazed by the delicious flavor created by blending it with garlic, onions, and other ingredients. All of the ingredients work together to make one creamy and delicious comforting soup.
- Creamy without the cream. This soup calls for cashews as a delicious dairy-free alternative. If for any reason you prefer not to use cashews, you can skip them altogether.
- Freezer-friendly recipe. It's easy to prepare in advance and store in the freezer for when you're ready to enjoy it.
The added nutrition and fiber make it the perfect addition to your meal or delicious enough to enjoy alone as a light meal.
Ingredients you'll need
To make this soup, you'll need the following ingredients:
- Oil: I use avocado oil
- Yellow onion: peeled and diced
- Garlic: minced or smashed. Alternatively, you can also use 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.
- Cauliflower: trimmed and cut into florets
- Vegetable broth: while this soup calls for vegetable broth as the main liquid ingredient to simmer the vegetables in, you can also use water if you don't have any broth on-hand.
- Unsweetened almond milk: or any other unsweetened milk, such as cashew milk, oat milk, or hemp milk.
- Raw cashews: rinsed and drained
- Sea salt and black pepper: to taste
How to make a vegan cauliflower soup
Cauliflower soup is so easy to make! Prepare the ingredients, saute, simmer, and blend.
1. Sautee garlic and onion: start by warming up oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 5-7 minutes until the onions are fragrant and start to appear translucent.
2. Add remaining ingredients: Add cauliflower florets, cashews, vegetable broth, milk, and salt.
3. Simmer: Cover and simmer until the cauliflower is tender, about 25-30 minutes.
4. Blend: Turn off the heat. Carefully transfer the cooked ingredients into a blender and puree until it’s smooth. Transfer back into the pot. Alternatively, use an immersion blender.
5. Adjust seasoning and serve: Adjust seasoning, if needed. While it's now ready to serve, I like to warm it up a bit since the process of blending can cool down the soup.
Storage and reheating
To store: Store in an airtight container for 3 days in the fridge.
To reheat: When ready to enjoy, warm in a saucepan over medium heat.
To freeze: store in the freezer for up to 3 months. I recommend dividing the soup into serving sizes so you can easily reheat it. Thaw before reheating.
Ingredient suggestions and variations
Roast the cauliflower: for a deeper flavor, roast the cauliflower before making the soup. While it will take a little longer to roast the cauliflower, making the actual soup will be quicker!
Add herbs: for added flavor, try adding herbs like parsley, cilantro, chives, thyme, or rosemary.
Soak cashews: Soak in water for 30 minutes. Rinse well and drain before using them in the recipe, especially if you'll be blending the soup in a standard blender.
Add spices: while I find that only salt and pepper are needed for this soup, you may add spices to boost the flavor. I recommend paprika, cayenne pepper, or even hot sauce.
Vegetable broth: For added flavor, use vegetable broth instead of water.
Make it cheesy: for a cheesy flavor, add 1/4-1/2 cup of shredded cheese cheddar, parmesan, mozzarella, provolone, or gruyere. Note: the soup will no longer be vegan.
More easy soup recipes
- Vegan Black Bean Soup
- Sweet Potato and Kale Soup
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Creamy Sweet Potato Soup
- Instant Pot Lentil Soup
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoons oil, I use avocado oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large head of cauliflower, trimmed and cut into florets
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/4 cup raw cashews, rinsed and drained
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, to taste
Optional toppings
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced green onions
- 1 tablespoon chopped herbs, such as thyme, cilantro, parsley, chives
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add cauliflower florets, cashews, vegetable broth, milk, and salt.
- Cover and simmer until the cauliflower florets are tender, about 25-30 minutes. Turn off heat.
- Carefully transfer the cooked ingredients into a blender and puree until it’s smooth and creamy. Transfer soup back into the pot. Alternatively, use an immersion blender to process until smooth and creamy.
- Adjust seasoning, if needed. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish, and serve.
Notes
- Vegetable broth: Add more vegetable broth if the soup is too thick. You may need to adjust seasoning.
- Store: Store in an airtight container for 3 days in the fridge.
- Freeze: Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. I recommend dividing the soup into serving sizes so you can easily reheat it. Thaw before reheating.
- Reheat: When ready to enjoy, warm in a saucepan over medium heat.
BENSON says
This was so delicious! We found this on the clevermeal.com 15 healthy soups under 200 calories and have so far done the beet + parsnip, thai coconut, and the lentil soups - all have far exceeded my expectations, but this one is narrowly my favorite so far. We also thought it needed some spice and added chili flakes and ground pepper (i just saw your recommendation for paprika, cayenne, hot sauce and will give that a try next time).
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So glad you enjoyed it, Benson! Thank you for sharing!
Charlie says
I made this the other night. As we were not concerned about it being vegan, I used whipping cream instead of milk.
It is quick and easy to make, but I will use the food processor the next time. I just used an immersion blender.
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So glad to hear you enjoyed it, Charlie! I appreciate your feedback!
Susan says
OMG this is so good. I added sautéed mushrooms on top and this is gonna be my new favorite dish. Yummmmm!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So glad you enjoyed it, Susan! The sauteed mushrooms sound like a delicious topping!
Sara says
This sounds delicious, but I have a question. If I couldn't use almond milk due to an allergy, what substitution would you recommend? Thanks for your time with answering, I can't wait to have a warm bowl of this on a cold day!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
Hi Sara, simply swap out the almond milk with water or more vegetable broth! I hope you enjoy it.
Julia says
Soups are my go to lunches in winter so I am always on the lookout for new recipes. Thanks for the inspiration!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So happy to hear, Julia!
Danielle Wolter says
what a great idea to add cashews to this soup! it sounds just delicious.
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
Thank you! So glad you're a fan!
Dannii says
This is one of my favourite winter soups. So comforting.
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So happy to hear, Dannii!
Jeannette says
I LOVE cauliflower soup and this recipe is just the one I need! Can't wait to try this! Thanks for sharing!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So happy to hear, Jeannette!! Hope you enjoy it.
Emese says
I also have a cauliflower soup recipe but I haven't thought of adding cashews. It must be so tasty with it. Thanks for sharing.
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
Cashews add extra creaminess. I hope you enjoy it, Emese!
Tisha says
Cauliflower soup is such a great creamy soup for this cold weather coming up!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
It truly is!
Amy says
I love cauliflower soup, it's so creamy and comforting!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
Thank you, Amy! So glad you enjoyed it.
Michelle says
I think cauliflower soup is one of my all-time favourite soups! This one looks gorgeous, I love the idea of using soaked cashews, too. Will definitely be adding this to my weekly meal plan.
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
So happy to hear, Michelle. This cauliflower soup is definitely a Fall favorite of mine.
Liz says
I love anything cauliflower!! I'll have to try this soup!
Sapana Chandra, MS, CHC says
I hope you enjoy it, Liz!
Karly says
This looks so creamy and delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Sapana Chandra says
Thank you, Karly! I hope you give it a try!
Marcie says
Oh this looks tasty! I love creamy soups, but since I'm lactose intolerant, they don't always love me back! This sounds easy, too!
Sapana Chandra says
Thanks so much! I hope you love it!