Brown Butter Cauliflower Soup

Watch my cream of cauliflower soup web story here.

Very nice recipe. I found two heads of cauliflower for $2.00, I doubled this and put everything in my Instapot on pressure cook for 25 minutes. I then added cream cheese, heavy cream, butter and whipped with my immersion blender.

Finished with truffle oil. Thank you for such a versatile recipe, it is delicious!

Reader Lisa

Why This Recipe Is So Great

This brown butter cauliflower soup recipe is truly fantastic, friends.

It’s rich and creamy and filling.

It’s very easy to make.

It will make converts out of cauliflower haters. I know this because I used to be one. Nothing a little cream, cream cheese, and brown butter can’t cure!

It reheats well. Just pour your leftovers into a pot and heat over medium heat, and it’ll taste just as fresh as the day you made it.

Ingredients and Procedure

Ingredients

Note that all the ingredients in this decadent cream of cauliflower soup support either creaminess and/or nuttiness.

I’m telling you, you’ll want to drink this with a straw, it’s so good.

• cauliflower: Get 1 large head or two smaller ones and cut it up into florets yourself. It’ll cost less than getting pre-cut cauliflower
• heavy cream: Adds silky body. Perhaps not strictly necessary, but wow does it make the soup feel luxurious
• cream cheese: This is potentially optional, although it adds a subtle tang you might really enjoy
• browned butter: the brown butter adds depth of flavor and a nuttiness that is pretty irresistable. I have a post with a video showing you in (almost) real time how to make browned butter, so check that out if you’ve not made it before
• white pepper: you can use black pepper if you don’t already have white pepper, as long as you don’t mind the black flecks in your creamy white soup
• kosher salt: you won’t need tons because there’s salt in the cream cheese and Parmesan
• broth: to thin the soup to your preferred texture. I recommend using either low-sodium vegetable broth or chicken broth. Or if you want to maintain the pure cauliflower-brown butter flavor, you can even use water
• nutmeg: goes beautifully with cauliflower. It adds just a little something that you might not recognize but you’ll really appreciate
• Parmesan: brings a bit of saltiness and umami goodness as well as more nuttiness.

What To Do

The soup is really easy to make, friends.

1. First, you’ll simmer your cauliflower in cream along with some salt and white pepper.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and puree.
3. Add more broth (or water) until you like the texture of your soup
4. Serve, garnished with some chopped herbs, another dusting of nutmeg, some finely grated Parm and a few grains of flaky finishing salt

PRO TIP: You don’t have to puree your soup until it’s completely smooth. If you like a more rustic texture, you can just mash everything together really well with your potato masher and call it a day.

How to Serve

You have a couple of options here. You can serve this in big bowls if you want. Just know it’s very rich and filling.

You can also serve it in cups so there’s room for maybe a side salad on your plate.

And this creamy soup is also perfect for soup shooters for appetizer parties, so don’t rule out cordial glasses or shot glasses.

Useful Equipment

You’ll want a good sized saucepan to cook your cauliflower in. I often turn to my 3 quart saucepan for this. It’s not too big, and it’s not too small.

And depending on how smooth you want your soup to be, you can use a potato masher, an immersion blender, and for the smoothest, silkiest texture, a countertop blender.

Tips for Success

Simmering the cauliflower in cream rather than water tames the funkiness that cauliflower sometimes gets when cooked too long. You’re welcome.

You can serve this as a puree, like decadent cauliflower mashed potatoes, if you don’t add any additional liquid. Your choice.

Sides

Usually when I think “soup,” I also think “sandwiches.”

But this soup is so rich and creamy that I think some lean vegetable dishes, like roasted green beans with a sharp, citrusy vinaigrette, would be best as sides.

Or maybe a lovely winter salad, like this Brussels Sprouts Salad with Citrus Dressing or Arugula and Pear Salad with Toasted Walnuts.

You want something that has some acid in it to act as a nice foil to the rich, creamy nuttiness of the soup.

More Cauliflower Recipes

Cauliflower is incredibly versatile.

Sure, you can eat it raw, blanched or steamed.

But since it’s low carb, has relatively few calories on its own, and packs a lot of nutrients, people use it for everything from vegan buffalo chicken to po’boys.

And the low carb and keto folks (aside from needing to make this soup), as well as some gluten free folks love a good cauliflower pizza crust or cauliflower rice.

You’ve Got Questions. I’ve Got Answers.

If you have any questions about this or any other recipe or post on the site, there are a few ways to get in touch.

You can leave a comment on the post, and I’ll be back in touch within 24 hours.

If your question is more pressing, don’t hesitate to email me, and I should be back in touch within 4 hours (unless I’m asleep) or often much more quickly than that.

And here’s your printable holiday recipe card. Click to open a pdf to save or right click to save as a jpeg. You might also like to download my free holiday recipe card templates. Enjoy!

A Note About Measurements

This is the kitchen scale that I recommend for home cooks and bakers. Using a scale will help you be more accurate and consistent in your measurements.

It is lightweight, easy to store, accurate, and very easy to use.

I hope you’ve learned something from this post or that you’ve decided to make the recipe.

It would really help me and other readers out if you’d rate the recipe using the star ratings in the recipe card.

It’s also very helpful to me and to other readers if you leave a comment and/or a recipe review.

Thank you so much for being here and for helping others find my recipes by sharing on your social platforms!

Thank you for spending some time with me today, friends.

Enjoy the creamy, delicious soup.

Take care, and have a lovely day.