I love cauliflower and when I am buying one, I try to get one with as many of its green leaves attached as possible.

Ingredients

I find the flavour of the leaves as interesting as the flower itself and the combination of both leaves and flowers gives the most flavoursome result. I wish the growers of this lovely vegetable could send them to market untrimmed thereby getting more value for the efforts of growing the vegetable. It seems a shame to be leaving so much of the vegetable in the field. 

In any event this soup is delicious and comforting and the suggested spiced tomato oil really elevates it into something lovely. 

Serves 6-8

  • 1 medium sized head of cauliflower
  • 50g butter
  • 130g finely chopped onion
  • 170g diced potato
  • 1 clove of garlic peeled and chopped
  • 600ml chicken Stock
  • Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
  • C 100ml creamy milk ( ½  milk, ½ cream)
  • Chopped coriander leaves

Spiced Tomato Oil

I like to measure out all of my ingredients for this recipe before I start cooking as there is one crucial point during the process where speed is of the essence. Put the ingredients that are added in together into one bowl to facilitate easy additions to the cooking pan.  

  • 2.5cm piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 6 cloves of peeled garlic
  •  50ml water
  • 3 tablespoons sunflower or olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
  • 2 teaspoons of  cumin seeds
  •  350g very ripe, peeled and chopped tomatoes or 1 x 14oz / 400g tin of tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 tablsp roasted and ground coriander seeds
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper
  • Salt and a pinch of sugar

Method

  1. Remove all of the stalks and green leaves from around the cauliflower and if in good condition, cut them into 2 cm pieces. Cut the tough core out of the cauliflower and discard. Break up the florets and chop coarsely into pieces similar to the stalks.
  2. Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan and allow to foam. Add the onion, potato and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Toss the vegetables in the butter and cover with a disc of parchment paper and a tight fitting saucepan lid. Cook on a very low heat until the vegetables are beginning to become tender. Add the chicken stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Continue cooking until the onion and potato are completely tender. Add the chopped cauliflower and simmer gently until the cauliflower is tender and cooked. Taste and correct the seasoning. Add the chopped coriander and puree to a smooth consistency with a hand held blender or in a liquidizer. If the soup is a little thick for your liking, you can add a little more chicken stock or creamy milk to correct the consistency.
  3.  Serve each bowl of hot soup with a generous drizzle of the spiced tomato oil. 

Spiced Tomato Oil

  1. Put the ginger, garlic and water in a blender and process to a smooth puree. Heat the oil in a frying pan and allow to get quite hot.
  2. Add the cumin and fennel seeds and cook and colour for just a few seconds. This happens so quickly.
  3. Immediately add the tomatoes, ginger and garlic mix, coriander, turmeric, cayenne, salt and a pinch of sugar.
  4. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5-8 minutes while stirring occasionally until the mixture thickens slightly.
  5. Taste and correct seasoning.