Skip to Content

Cauliflower Cheddar Beer Soup

This super creamy cauliflower cheddar beer soup is packed full of flavor and is perfect for cool weather. In an hour you can go from hungry to full.

This super creamy cauliflower cheddar beer soup is packed full of flavor and is perfect for cool weather. In an hour you can go from hungry to full.

Last Friday I had the pleasure of having lunch with two fabulous bloggers, Gina and Winnie. I always enjoy going out to lunch with them and we usually end up chatting for hours. We really need to plan a dinner together so we can chat the night away.

This super creamy cauliflower cheddar beer soup is packed full of flavor and is perfect for cool weather. In an hour you can go from hungry to full.

While at lunch we all had the most delicious soup. I decided this weekend I had to recreate it’s deliciousness. Off to the store I went to gather the ingredients!

{On a totally unrelated note can we talk about how awful it is to go to the grocery store on a Sunday? We live close by to a college and the store is always packed with students pushing carts at the pace of a snail. I watched one college girl walk by with nothing in her cart but cases of bottled Perrier water. Really? That’s what you are choosing to spend your money on…Perrier water?}

Back to the soup. It’s creamy, savory and packed full of flavor. I even added a little bit of jalapeño to add a bite of spice. It was the perfect addition to this cold winter (please spring come soon!) day.

This super creamy cauliflower cheddar beer soup is packed full of flavor and is perfect for cool weather. In an hour you can go from hungry to full.

Print

Califlower Cheddar & Beer Soup

This super creamy cauliflower cheddar beer soup is packed full of flavor and is perfect for cool weather. In an hour you can go from hungry to full.

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 head cauliflower, diced (heads only)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 6 strips thick cut bacon, diced
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • 1 small jalapeño, diced and seeds removed (use only half if you don't like heat)
  • 2 bottles brown ale (I used Newcastle)
  • 3 cups chicken stock
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 8 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • Chives, diced (optional)

Slightly adapted from Mark Bittman

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut off bottom of the cauliflower (the green part), cut the head into 4 pieces, cut out the center core and cut off just the florets.

Lay out onto silpat lined rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, sprinkle with a little kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Bake for 10 minutes, stir/flip the cauliflower florets and continue baking for another 10 - 15 minutes until the cauliflower is soft and golden brown. Careful not to let the cauliflower burn. Once cooked set aside until ready to use.

In a large soup pot add olive oil and diced bacon. Cook over medium heat until the bacon is just starting to brown. Add in onion, carrots and jalapeño. Continue cooking until the vegetables are started to soften.

Add in beer, chicken stock, bay leaf, cayenne pepper, salt, roasted cauliflower and dijon mustard. Cook for about 10 minutes until flavors are combined and all vegetables are soft.

Add mixture to a Vitamix (or other high powered blender) and puree starting on speed 1 and slowly going up to speed 10. Blend on speed 10 for about 2 minutes until completely smooth.

Add pureed soup back to the pot and cook over low heat while you prepare the cheddar cheese.

In a bowl add shredded cheddar cheese and toss with 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Add cheese to the soup a handful at a time. Stirring the whole time so the soup does not burn and the cheese incorporates smoothly. Continue until all the cheese has been added and the soup is smooth.

Serve hot with diced chives if desired.

* It would also be great with little pieces of bacon on top but I forgot to make more.

Brandy

About Brandy!

I am a food lover and recipe developer bringing you delicious recipes that taste great and are easy to make! My food is inspired by travels around the world and my love of flavorful food. A list of things that make me happy: cats, Coke Zero, houseplants, and travel. Read more...

Jessica

Tuesday 18th of November 2014

Do you take the bay leaf out before putting it in the blender? FYI you have the bay leaf listed twice on the ingredients and in the directions.. Does the alcohol cook off? I have a 3-year old who eats what we eat. Wondering if this is inappropriate for kids. Not worried about the beer flavor, just the alcohol. Thanks.

nutmegnanny

Tuesday 18th of November 2014

Hi Jessica! I have fixed my mistake in the recipe, thank you! I'm fairly certain the alcohol has cooked off in this soup but I'm not 100%. It does cook for awhile so I would feel confident serving it to a child if that helps :)

Judy

Thursday 3rd of April 2014

Thanks for this delicious recipe. I just made a batch of it--so easy and so delicious. What a great way to get good for you veggies in your diet without even really knowing it.

Molly

Thursday 30th of January 2014

This was so so good!!!! I'm a veggo so I left out the bacon and used vegetable stock. I added some smoked paprika and a roasted red pepper (because I had it). Will defiantly make again! I made some soft pretzels to use for dippers -- amazing! Thank you so much for the recipe.

nutmegnanny

Friday 31st of January 2014

Hi Molly! Thank you so much for coming back and letting me know you liked the recipe! I love the idea of adding smoked paprika (its my favorite spice!) and roasted red pepper. Plus those pretzel dippers sound amazing!

Jen

Sunday 26th of January 2014

This has wayyyyyyyy too much beer in it! It was super butter and unfortunately unedible. My husband and I were really looking foward to eating this tonight. I followed the recipe, but might only need 1 bottle of beer....:(

nutmegnanny

Sunday 26th of January 2014

Hi Jen! The soup definitely has a beer taste but it doesn't usually come out bitter. If you would like to mellow out the taste I would recommend adding in more chicken stock and cooking it down to make it lovely and thick again. I'm super sorry you didn't like the way it turned out. Do you mind if I ask what beer you used? Thanks!

Cynthia

Wednesday 13th of November 2013

Wow, this soup looks absolutely amazing. Can you tell me if it has much of a beer flavor. We are just know into the taste of beer, so I'm leery about trying this one. If it does taste like beer, could I substitute more chicken broth and have it taste yummy? Thanks.

nutmegnanny

Saturday 16th of November 2013

Hi Cynthia! The soup does have a bit of beer flavor and if your not a fan I think stock would work just fine. You would still gets lots of yummy flavor from the cauliflower and cheese.

SEEN ON

as seen on promo graphic

SEEN ON

as seen on promo graphic