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Homemade, warm and delicious, Cheesy Cauliflower Soup is the best and easy way to make a quick use of garden fresh cauliflower or leftover vegetables. This recipe is creamy and can be eaten vegetarian style, or you can add bacon or ham. It's a simple, versatile soup!

Bowl with cheesy cauliflower soup garnished with bacon bits and chives.

Add leftover ham from our 3- ingredient Ham Glaze or simply use this as a side. Make this soup Loaded style by adding Jalepenos, green onion, and bacon bits as a garnish. It will make this copycat Zupas Wisconsin soup pop with flavor.

This Cheesy Cauliflower soup is perfect for the end of summer and fall season. It is a great way to use vegetables from the garden and also delicious warm soup for the cooling fall and winter months. This soup does not use potatoes!

Be sure to check out our other recipes to use up those end of summer vegetables like Zucchini Pizza, or Vegetable Tortellini Soup with Chicken Sausage. Also try our copycat Chili's Southwest Chicken Soup or Ham and Potato Soup in Crock Pot for a flavorful soup with fresh ingredients.

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Ingredients
Instructions
Substitutions
Variations
Equipment
Storage
Top tip
Recipe

Ingredients

Cauliflower
Yellow Onion
Butter
All Purpose Flour
Half and Half
Chicken Broth
Sharp Cheddar
Pepper Jack
Salt
Dijon
Water

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Sauted yellow onion in butter in a large pot.

In a large pot, melt the butter and sauté the onions until they are translucent and browning.

Making a roux with butter, onion, and flour.

2. Add the all purpose flour and mix until a roux in formed.

Adding the chicken broth and half and half to the flour and butter.

3. Slowly pour the half and half and chicken brother in with the roux, stirring continually.

Chopped cauliflower boiling in the half and half and chicken broth.

4. Add the chopped cauliflower and bring to a boil. Then turn the heat down, cover, and simmer until the cauliflower is tender.

Blending the softened cauliflower and liquid in the blender.

5. Add the tender cauliflower and liquid into a high speed blender. Make sure to vent out the steam while blending.

Smooth blended cauliflower and liquid in a high speed blender.

6. Blend on high until smooth and creamy looking. There should be no chunks.

Adding the pepper jack cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, and dijon mustard to the blended cauliflower soup.

7. Pour the blended soup back into the pot. Add the pepper jack cheese, and sharp cheddar cheese and dijon mustard. Stir until cheese is melted and soup is mixed thoroughly.

Garnished Cheesy Cauliflower soup in a bowl .

8. Serve soup immediately and garnish with bacon bits, ham, extra cheese, green onion, or chives.

Hint: If you want to thin the soup, add more chicken broth ½ cup at a time.

Substitutions

Cheddar Cheese - Use all cheddar cheese instead of pepper jack if you aren't a fan of the spice that pepper jack cheese brings.
Vegan Cheese - use your favorite brand of vegan cheese at a 1:1 ratio to make this more vegan friendly.
Vegetarian - make this soup a completely vegetarian soup by not garnishing with bacon bits or ham.

Variations

Bacon - add bacon bits or fresh cooked chopped bacon for extra flavor and added protein.
Ham - mix in 1 cup of chopped ham or garnish the top for added protein.
Jalapeno- Garnish the top with Jalapeños for a spicy version of this soup.
Kale- Mix in kale as a garnish or with the soup when blending the cauliflower.
Broccoli- Use a mixture of both cauliflower and broccoli if you don't have enough cauliflower on hand.

Equipment

For this recipe you will need:

Large Pot
Blender

Storage

Store leftover soup in an air tight container in the refrigerator. Good for 3-4 days. when reheated, the soup tends to have a thicker consistency.

This soup can be frozen for up to 1 month.

Top tip

Make sure to not over cook the cauliflower. You only need to cook the cauliflower until tender. If you overcook it, it may have an unpleasant taste.

Recipe