Recipe: Cauliflower soup with curry oil and crunchy croutons

Cauliflower is often seen as a winter vegetable when in fact it’s actually a summer one. Often overlooked for its more fashionable rival, broccoli, it’s rich in Vitamin C and a great antioxidant.  It’s also linked to preventing breast and prostate cancer.

Cauliflower was one of the rare foods I’m actually not overly fond of, but this dish totally converted me! You could also sub out the curry powder for cheddar cheese for a cauliflower cheese soup.

Cauliflower soup with curry oil and croutons

Ingredients (serves 6)

1 Cauliflower, cut into florets

1 onion, fine diced

1 stick celery, fine diced

1 tsp curry powder

500ml chicken or veg stock

500ml milk

150ml single cream

3 slices slightly stale bread

15ml olive or rapeseed oil

1/2 tsp curry powder

Method

1)      Sweat the onions for 2-3 minutes and add the curry powder

2)      Add the florets and stir for a couple of mines, coating in the curry powder (add more if you like it hot!)

3)      Add milk and stock and bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer and cook until the florets are soft.

4)      Meanwhile, cut the bread into small cubes and drizzle lightly with oil.  Put in a preheated oven (mark 6) for about 8 minutes or until golden

5)      Mix the curry powder with the oil and stir.  Set aside

6)      Blitz in a blender and strain to a smooth consistency.

7)      Finish with the cream.

8)      To present, place a few croutons in the centre and drizzle the oil around.

Peter suggests...

I'm going a little left field here and picking a Chenin Blanc, probably from South Africa, and picking the 2010 Badenhorst Secateurs Chenin Blanc.  The tropical fruit and honey elements that come from this wine will offer stonkingly good balance with the cauliflower flavour, yet the spice will be tempered by the honey note.  Plus, this wine from Adi Badenhorst is outstanding value for money. £8.99 from Swig, Luvians, Jeroboams  If you want a red instead, give a decent Beaujolais Villages or Fleurie a shot, and these wines should go well too.