Curried Cauliflower Cream Soup

From Lynn Rosetto Kasper and Sally Swift from their book “The Splendid Table’s How to Eat Supper”.
This soup is comforting and satisfying on a cold day. A versatile soup that can convert to vegan easily.
Shared by Carla J. Her notes are in red italics. Tandoori Spice Mix works well in this recipe and is sold at our Fall and Winter Sales.

INGREDIENTS

Good tasting extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium to large onion, peeled and chopped
5 large garlic cloves, peeled and coarse chopped
3 tablespoons curry powder (Tandoori Spice Mix works well)
1 large head of cauliflower, trimmed of greens, washed, cored, and chunked
3 medium potatoes (red skin or Yukon Gold), about 1 to 1-1/4 pounds, peeled and chopped into 1-inch chunks.
2 14-ounce cans low-sodium chicken broth, or vegetable broth
Water
Salt to taste
2 large lemons, cut in wedges
1-1/2 cups whole milk plain yogurt

DIRECTIONS

Film the bottom of a 6-quart stockpot with the olive oil, and heat over medium heat. Stir in the onion, garlic, and curry powder. Reduce the heat to medium low, and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, taking care not to let the onions color. They should be softened a little, but the point is to let the curry’s aroma blossom without burning it.
Add the cauliflower, potato, broth, and enough water to barely cover the vegetables. Bring the soup to a boil, partially cover it, and cook 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are fork tender (this step takes longer, 30 to 45 minutes). Cool 15 minutes. Puree with a hand-held blender (for less cleanup), or in small batches in a regular blender. Taste the soup for seasoning. (The flavor is better if the soup is brought back to simmer for 15-20 minutes)
Ladle out the soup, then finish each bowl with a squeeze of lemon and a generous dollop of the yogurt.

Variation:

Carrot-Leek Cream with Nutmeg:

Prepare the recipe as written, but replace the onion with the white part of 3 large leeks (slit them and rinse out any sand before chopping). Sauté them as the recipe describes, but substitute 1/4 teaspoon fresh-grated nutmeg for curry powder.

Substitute 1 pound peeled, thin-sliced carrots (use the food processor to slice them) and 1 peeled and chopped medium-sized potato for the cauliflower.

Cook as directed in the original recipe. Season the finished soup with salt, pepper, and fresh-grated nutmeg to taste.

Serves 4 to 6 as a main dish, 8 as a first course.
Soup holds in the refrigerator up to 4 days.

A “virtual” cream soup, this is a creamy soup made without the cream. We don’t want to oversell, but this soup comes together in a blink and proves simple really can fly.

The spicing opportunities in this recipe are limitless. If you skip the puree, the soup takes on a totally different life. The essential finale is fresh lemon and generous spoonsful of whole milk yogurt (fat free or low fat yogurt works, too).

Cook to Cook: Be careful! If using a blender, be sure to cool the soup and then puree it in small batches, or you stand a good chance of being burned when the heat from a large batch causes the lid to fly off.

From The Splendid Table’s How to Eat Supper by Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift