Funny how it’s possible to love two vegetables separately, but never thing to have them together. So it has been with cauliflower and parsnips, for me. I love them both, but I don’t tend to pair them up: I have parsnips with other, sweet root veggies, like carrots and beets, while cauliflower tends to go into curries or salads or raw rice dishes. Finally, I had the thought to marry these two awesome winter veggies together, and the result–a sweet, savory, and creamy roasted cauliflower parsnip soup–was awesome.
Arguably the easiest way to make soup is to simmer everything together in one pot, but sometimes I can’t help roasting the veggies before I add them to my soup pot. It deepens the flavor so much, and I’m rarely sorry when I make that my cooking method. Sure, it’s another step, but roasting with parchment or foil can at least help with the cleanup.
As for the soup itself, the ingredients are fairly straightforward: cauliflower, parsnips, herbs. In place of onion, the recipe calls for shallots, which have a little less bite (and honestly, I often prefer them). If you can stand to wait for the vegetables to roast while your home fills up with wonderful flavors, the recipe is super easy to make, and it’s perfect for fall and winter.
It’s a gray, drizzly day here in DC, and I’m almost tempted to make the soup again—that’s how much I liked it. Regardless of where you are or what the weather’s like, I hope you give this one a try soon.
Happy weekend!
xo
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Delicious! Just happened that I had cauliflower and parsnips and shallots. Into google and hey presto …arrived at your inspiring site, which I’ll be back to browse again. Great recipe! Thanks!
So glad you like it!
I have just finished making this soup and it is delicious!!! Thanks goodnessI I’m on a detox programme and cant eat much, found a recommendation for your website in the back of a book I was looking at buying and searched you up. And hey presto…a delicious soup, perhaps the first yummy evening meal in 7 days…thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!
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creamy soup with cashew cream and greens on the side! winter heaven!
And now I feel like a total JERK for not reading more comments. Parchment & silpat were both mentioned…duh…sorry : )
I’m not sure I’d be able to resist just eating those lively roasted veggies – they wouldn’tmakee it into a soup!
This looks so amazingly awesome.. Yum.. Cant wait to try it.
Just mixed up a big pot of this soup to go with the grey, cold weather outside. Oh, the creamy goodness! A neighbour gave me a load of parsnips from their garden so I’m searching your site now for some other recipes. Thanks for this warm bowl of goodness.
good call on the shallots…thats a perfect alternative for peeps like you and me who arent fans of strong oniony flavors. plus the fewer tears when chopping and prepping the better!
I forget about my love of shallots all the time… I really need to pick some up!
This looks delicious, Gena! Love all the flavors, contrasts, and textures you chose in this roasted veggie soup. Do you think carrots would work in place of the parsnips? I have a costco- size bag of carrots begging to be used for soup, not that I dislike parsnips or anything ๐
They sure would! Hope it turns out well ๐
Lovin’ the garlic… great comfort food.
You had me at “carmelizing cauliflower” ๐
There is no ingredient in this recipe that I don’t love love love. However, I’m unsure whether I’ll be able to resist the temptation of eating all the roasted cauliflower straight from the pan…
The garlic puts it over the edge. You could roast a whole head and squeeze its yumminess into the soup before blending. OMG good. Made it this past week.
I love how versatile foil is! thanks for the recipe, it sounds amazing
Roasted cauliflower is one of my favorite things ever.
Finally a weekend that feels like spring in NYC! This recipe is so easy, the vitamix would work perfectly!
This looks like a perfect last hurrah to winter recipe to make.
I have been daydreaming about roasted cauliflower lately. I almost bought a head last night but it looked kind of puny in the store, so I changed my mind. I’ll live vicariously through your taste buds for now. ๐ That soup looks delicious!
That sounds and looks amazing!
What’s really nice about raw and/or vegan soups is that you can easily add “cream” by using cashews…I think it would be so much better anyway with a cashew cream because it feels odd to mix dairy cream with vegetables!
Hi Gena glad that the foil-lined tray was a big time saver. I cannot imagine!! roasting veggies or making any of my one pot or one pan meals without throwing a sheet of foil down. Honestly, takes cleanup from massive amounts of elbow grease and time to just…lift up and toss.
I have 17 versions of veggie bakes, with and without beans, nooch, nut creamzs and sauces, adding salsa, hummus, etc and when you roast veggies + add those other things for moisture, the result is a mess if you dont use foil ๐
The soup looks wonderful and I hope your weather warms up. Or else you can just make more soup ๐
I love the flavor of roasted cauliflower. I could eat heads and heads of it…but I hate cleaning roasting pans! Especially because my sink has a center divider. I will definitely use foil from now on! As for the soup, it looks divine! I love how vegetables have the ability to become so creamy when blended.
this looks amazing! and i just bought a nice head of cauliflower that i was going to “mash” you just helped me find a new way to use it!
I just so happen to have TONS of cauliflower and parsnips in my fridgy fridge. This NEVER happens!! I am so excited to try this out, you are a saint!:)
Yum, I love the texture and taste of pureed cauliflower. Especially as “mashed cauliflower” with seasoning and a bit of almond milk.
Tin foil on pans is great for avoiding cleanup but I can never bring myself to do it because it seems so wasteful. I wish there was an alternative because scrubbing the pans is soooo annoying!
That’s how I feel!
Yes, but think of the water you waste in scrubbing. Unless you have a catchment, I bet that is much worse. But, i live in the desert, so water is at the forefront of my thoughts most of the time.
I don’t think I use a ton of water plus I’d consider the water used in producing the foil. Water is definitely something I am conscious not to waste. Scrubbing pans usually involves more elbow grease than water for this reason!
I agree hippierunner! I’d feel so guilty, especially as I don’t think I would use any extra water to wash the pan, just the same water I washed the dishes in anyway.
I stopped using tin foil in all my oven cooking when I discovered it releases harmful chemicals into the food. I use parchment paper instead. And I reuse mine a couple times.
I second the use of Parchment Paper!
I like using parchment too and unless there is a lot of oil used, it is pretty easy to save and use again, so one box can last a long time.
I use/resuse parchment paper for messy jobs, but have recently converted to the Silpat for the ordinary pan of roasted vegetables. I bought mine at Amazon and I have found the $20 well worth it – it’s a resuable no-stick mat that sits in your baking pan.
Ther are WONDERFUL, non- heavy metal leaching options : ) May I suggest parchment paper or, for a non wasteful solution, silpat or other silicone cookery item. THX!!