If creamy soups are your weakness but you'd rather skip the butter and heavy cream, cauliflower is the perfect substitute! This dairy-free soup recipe is a healthier adaptation I created from a cookbook years ago, and it remains a top favorite. When you blend cooked cauliflower with vegetable stock, it forms a wonderfully creamy base for nearly any soup—no traditional cream needed. It's both nutritious and delicious.
To give this soup an extra touch of richness and creaminess, I added some culinary coconut milk. The combination of spices and coconut delivers so much flavor that you'll never guess this soup is dairy-free!
You only need a handful of basic ingredients, most of which are likely already in your pantry. Start by dicing a couple of onions, a few garlic cloves, and one large head of cauliflower. Since the soup will be blended later, don't stress about making your chopping look perfect!
Grab your favorite soup pot and get ready for an incredible aroma to fill your kitchen…
Sauté the onions and garlic in coconut oil for a few minutes. Stir in the spices and cook for another minute or two—mmm, the smell is amazing! Then add the cauliflower and let it steam in the pot for about 15 minutes. Pour in the coconut milk and vegetable stock, then simmer until all the vegetables are fully tender.
An immersion hand blender (like this one) is ideal for pureeing the soup. You can simply blend it right in the pot, saving yourself from having to transfer hot soup to a blender and creating extra dirty dishes.
Once it's thoroughly blended, carefully ladle the soup into bowls and top with toasted pine nuts. I strongly recommend not skipping the pine nuts—they add an incredible depth of flavor!
This recipe is also very versatile. Feel free to add some protein or diced veggies for an even heartier soup. Here's the printable version of the recipe…
Food Babe’s Creamy Cauliflower Cumin Soup
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 medium onions, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 1 large cauliflower, chopped into small pieces
- 2 cups unsweetened coconut milk
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat.
- Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 2–3 minutes until softened.
- Stir in the cinnamon, cumin, paprika, and chili powder and cook for another 2–3 minutes.
- Add the cauliflower, cover the pot, and let it steam for 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Once the cauliflower is tender, mash it coarsely with a potato masher.
- Pour in the coconut milk and vegetable stock, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook for 10–15 minutes.
- While the soup simmers, toast the pine nuts in a dry pan over medium-low heat for 5–7 minutes until lightly browned, then set aside.
- Puree the soup with a hand blender, serve topped with toasted pine nuts, and enjoy!
Please use all organic ingredients if possible
Have you ever made a “creamy” soup without dairy? What ingredients did you use? Let me know in the comments! If you know someone who would love a healthy, flavor-packed soup like this, please share this post with them.
Xo,
Vani
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