This carrot and cauliflower soup recipe is one of my favorite winter-weather treats. Fresh carrots and cauliflower are cooked with aromatic onions, garlic, and ginger, then pureed into a silky smooth soup. It’s light, sweet, and creamy, all wrapped into one beautiful soup. This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosures.
This winter has been a cold one already. My hometown has already experienced 42 hours of below-freezing temperatures, and it’s snowing again today.
When it’s cold outside, I love to cozy up to a warm soup that coats my insides with healthy goodness. And this beautiful and nourishing carrot and cauliflower soup is the perfect recipe to combat those cold winter blues.
Why I Love this Soup
I love this soup for so many reasons.
For starters, it’s comforting, cozy, and keeps me warm from the inside out. With the temperatures plummeting outside, this soup makes sure it’s cozy and warm inside.
It’s also extremely nourishing as it’s filled with many essential nutrients, including Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and folate, all of which help keep me healthy during cold and flu season. It’s only 67 calories per serving, too, so eat up!
This soup is easily digestible, too. The blender breaks down the vegetables into digestible bits, making it easy for your small intestine to quickly absorb the nutrients and then distribute them to every cell and organ in your body.
It’s beautiful. The carrots add a beautiful orange hue and a touch of sweetness. I think this is one of the prettiest soups I’ve ever made.
On top of it all, the taste and texture are perfect. The cauliflower adds a silky texture and slightly pungent flavor that balances the sweet carrots. The onion, garlic, and ginger add savory flavor to ensure this soup tastes as good as it looks.
And most importantly, all the ingredients are naturally gluten- and dairy-free, making this soup perfect for those following a specialty diet. This soup is made from pureed vegetables and broth – that’s it! No creams. No grains.
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make carrot and cauliflower soup:
Carrots: I recommend using regular carrots (vs. baby carrots) as I find regular carrots will be sweeter in taste and brighter in color. Just be sure to peel and wash them well. Carrots offer plenty of vitamin A, which is excellent for vision and boosting your immune system. They also provide plenty of Vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant to help boost your immune system’s defenses, which is especially important during cold and flu season.
Cauliflower: You can use an entire head of cauliflower (which weighs about 2 lbs) or two pounds of cauliflower florets. You’ll want to chop up the cauliflower head into chunks. Cauliflower is loaded with Vitamin C and fiber and is also a good source of folate.
Onion: I use a large yellow onion for this recipe. If you can’t find large onions, use two small or medium onions. The extra onion will enhance the flavor, so don’t worry about being exact.
Garlic: I usually add 6 cloves of garlic to my soup, but I realize not everyone is as much a fan of garlic as I am. Adjust to taste by adding more or less garlic, as desired. Did you know that onions and garlic may lower your risk for certain cancers?
Ginger: Fresh ginger is best, and I notice some people like their soup more gingery, others like it less. I use a one- or two-inch piece of fresh ginger with the peel removed. It’s easier to blend into the soup if it’s grated first.
Broth: I typically use store-bought vegetable or chicken broth; however, make sure whatever you use is labeled “gluten free.” If I have homemade bone broth left over, I use that instead. Experiment and see what you like best.
Seasonings: You’ll also add a generous pinch (or two) of Kosher salt, fresh ground pepper (to taste), and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
How to Make Carrot and Cauliflower Soup
Here’s how to make carrot and cauliflower soup:
(1) Heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large stockpot (with a cover). Add the onions and saute until translucent, approximately 2-3 minutes.
(2) Add the carrots, cauliflower, garlic, ginger, and vegetable broth to the stock pot and bring the mixture to a boil.
(3) Cover the pot and lower the heat to a rolling boil. Cook for about 45 minutes, occasionally stirring to press the vegetables down as they cook and soften.
(4) Once the vegetables are soft, uncover the pot and remove it from the heat. Allow the mixture to cool for 10 minutes.
(5) Using a hand-held immersion blender, blend all the ingredients into a creamy soup puree. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can blend the ingredients in a high-speed blender or food processor, working the mixture in batches.)
(6) Add a drizzle of olive oil, a generous pinch (or two) of Kosher salt, and fresh ground pepper (to taste), and continue to blend the soup until it’s silky smooth.
Toppings
Once you portion the soup into bowls, you can top it with pumpkin seeds, pepitas, homemade croutons, or crunchy chickpeas.
To make the crispy air-fryer chickpeas, drain and rinse a can of garbanzo beans. Pat them dry. Drizzle olive oil, a pinch of kosher salt, and a sprinkle of garlic powder on the chickpeas and toss until coated.
Add a single layer of chickpeas into your air fryer and cook at 375º F for 15-17 minutes, shaking the air fryer bucket 3-5 times as it cooks to ensure the chickpeas cook evenly and don’t burn.
Storing the Soup
You can store leftovers in a sealed container in your fridge. If you’re meal prepping, you can portion the leftover soup into small 1-2 cup-sized containers to enjoy all week.
To freeze leftover soup, add pre-portioned soup to freezer-safe bags, then freeze for up to 6 months. Defrost the soup in your fridge overnight or place it in a warm bowl of water to defrost, then heat it in your microwave or the stovetop.
More Soup Recipes
Enjoy these soup recipes too:
- Healthy Carrot and Walnut Soup
- Homemade Gluten-Free Tomato Soup with “Grilled Cheese” Crackers
- Easy Gluten-Free Matzo Ball Soup Recipe
- Gluten-Free Ramen Noodles Soup
- Hearty Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Easy and Gluten-Free Chicken and Dumpling Soup
Carrot and Cauliflower Soup
Equipment
- 1 Immersion blender (handheld) or high-speed blender or food processor
- 1 large stock pot
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil I used avocado oil
- 1 large yellow onion roughly chopped
- 2 lbs carrots tops removed, peeled, roughly chopped
- 2 lbs cauliflower florets or 1 cauliflower head roughly chopped
- 4-6 garlic cloves
- 1-2 inch piece of fresh ginger peeled and grated
- 5 cups vegetable broth or broth of choice
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 pinches Kosher salt to taste
- Fresh ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the vegtable oil over medium-high heat in a large stockpot (with a cover). Add the onions and saute until translucent, approximately 2-3 minutes.
- Add the carrots, cauliflower, garlic, ginger, and vegetable broth to the stock pot and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Cover the pot and lower the heat to a rolling boil. Cook for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally to press the vegetables down as they cook and soften.
- Once the vegetables are soft, uncover the pot and remove it from the heat. Allow the mixture to cool for 10 minutes.
- Using a hand-held immersion blender, blend all the ingredients into a creamy soup puree. (If you don't have an immersion blender, you can blend the ingredients in a high-speed blender or food processor, working the mixture in batches.)
- Add a drizzle of olive oil, a generous pinch (or two) of Kosher salt, and fresh ground pepper (to taste), and continue to blend the soup until it's silky smooth.
- Portion the soup into bowls and top it with pumpkin seeds, pepitas, homemade croutons, or crunchy chickpeas (see recipe for air-fryer chickpeas in the Notes.)
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