This creamy cauliflower, leek and potato soup is comfort food at it’s best! It’s luxurious texture and rich flavour makes this a perfect soup!
I have to say, it is soup I don’t make very often, but when I do, I tell myself I need to! The cauliflower, leeks and potatoes offer mild flavours, and by adding smoky salty bacon, it gives it this rustic yet cozy and comforting pleasant flavour of goodness. I decided to add a small amount of sour cream to balance the flavours. It isn’t necessary but it’s a personal choice to add sour cream or yogurt. If you have never made this combination before, I highly recommend it! It is one you will want to add to your recipe collection.
What makes this soup so good....
Each ingredient offers it’s own distinct flavour and goodness. The butcher’s bacon, I call it, is in my opinion a much better cut that is full of smoky bacon flavour.
Each of the vegetables offer their own flavours, and the leeks are sweet with a milder onion taste. Cauliflower has a nutty undertone but overall it tends to take on the flavours of the other ingredients. The potatoes are subtle in sweetness but I like to add potatoes to soups for the reason that potatoes are a starchy vegetable which will enhance the creaminess in soups. They truly give that creamy texture once pureed. Celery tends to have a distinct sweet flavour however, if not fresh they can become bitter. First taste the celery to determine how much to add.
Sour cream isn’t required for this recipe, however, it is a Hungarian habit to add sour cream to soups, stews, sauce and many other dishes. It did add a hint of a tangy flavour and increased the a creamy texture.
Recipe suggestions and ingredients:
Bacon: adds smoky salty flavour and I recommend purchasing butcher’s bacon. It’s a thicker cut of bacon, and I prefer the smoky flavour over the bacon you can purchase at a grocery store.
Vegetable oil: I like to add sunflower, safflower or avocado oil to my soups
Leeks: cooking with leeks are a wonderful balance, it is a milder flavour then the regular cooking onion, yet it has such a lovely tasty in dishes.
Onion: only add a half just enough for flavour
Celery: adds a lovely sweetness to this soup
Potatoes: I like to add a potato or two to a soup if I want the outcome to be creamy without adding any dairy, and to get the same results.
Cauliflower: only one and half cup is added to this soup, enough for flavour, goodness and when pureed gives that lovely creamy texture.
Vegetable stock: recommended, water or chicken stock are options
Seasonings: to enhance flavour
Sour cream: I decided to add sour cream for purpose of flavour, but it isn’t necessary.
Garnish: chives, parsley and/or bacon
Creamy Cauliflower, Leek and Potato Soup
Equipment
- large sauce pan
Ingredients
- 2 slices smoky butcher's bacon
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 oz. leeks, white part only, sliced
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 2 celery rib, sliced
- 1 lb red potatoes, peeled, diced (5 medium)
- 1 1/2 cups cauliflower, cut into pieces
- 5 cups vegetable stock
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- garnish with chopped chives, parsley or bacon
Instructions
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, add bacon and fry until crispy. Remove and set aside.
- Continue on medium heat, add olive oil to pan, stir in leeks, and onions, sauté for about 5 minutes, until the start to soften. Stir in celery, potatoes and cauliflower to coat. Add stock and salt, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Remove from heat.
- Using a hand immersion or blender, puree the soup until smooth and no chunks remain. Return to heat, adjust seasoning if necessary. In a small bowl, add the sour cream and add a couple of ladles of the soup and mix well with a fork or whisk. Pour the sour cream mixture into the hot puree soup, and whisk until well blended.
- Ladle into bowls and garnish with chopped chives, parsley, and bacon. Serve with crusty bread.
Nutrition
How to make this recipe:
In a large saucepan over medium heat, add bacon and fry until crispy. Remove and set aside. Continue on medium heat, add olive oil to pan, stir in leeks, and onions, sauté for about 5 minutes, until the start to soften. Stir in celery, potatoes and cauliflower to coat. Add stock and salt, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Remove from heat.
Add stock and salt, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Remove from heat. Using a hand immersion or blender, puree the soup until smooth and no chunks remain. Return to heat, adjust seasoning if necessary. In a small bowl, add the sour cream and add a couple of ladles of the soup and mix well with a fork or whisk. Pour the sour cream mixture into the hot puree soup, and whisk until well blended.
Ladle into bowls and garnish with chopped chives, parsley, and bacon. Serve with crusty bread.
