Creamy vegan cauliflower soup with crispy, mustard-roasted parsnip croutons.

Welcome to the part 3 of the Friendly Beasts blog series. Today’s friendly beast is the “sheep with curly horn.” To reflect our woolly pal, I chose a rough, pebble-headed cauliflower.

Creamy soups are conflictive to my palate. I enjoy their richness, their comforting nature, and their easy preparation. But I also favor foods with many textures, and creamy soups fail here. Don’t get me wrong — I will eat any creamy soup you got, any day.  But I guess I feel far more satisfied after a bowl full of multiple characteristics. To me, a straight up creamy soup is like a dip without a chip. Would you eat guacamole with a spoon?  What is velvetty hummus without a complimenting crunchy carrot?

“I,” said the sheep with curly horn/ “I gave Him my wool for His blanket warm/ He wore my coat on Christmas morn/ I,” said the sheep with curly horn

So I had to have a crispy element to the soup. I found out last year that I really like parsnips.  Turns out, their lightly sweet and nutty notes make the perfect crouton. I dressed them up in my favorite stone-ground mustard, Inglehoffer (not sponsored), for an extra kick. And the mustard seeds added another layer of texture.

Quick aside – I promised myself that this winter, I would be more adventuous in my vegetable preparation. Meaning, I wasn’t going to roast everything like I usually do. And these croutons were the first thing I’ve roasted since the weather turned cold. Small changes, people.

The parsip croutons were tasty, but I wanted another element of texture and color.  A sprinkling of grassy microgreens took care of that. I also tried to break up some French endive to use as “spoons” for eating the soup, but that didn’t turn out so well. But I added the endive to a salad later on in the week, for, um…extra texture. And it was good.

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Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Parsnip Croutons

Yield: 4 starter, 2 main

Croutons and soup have relatively similar cooking times, you can make them simultaneously

Ingredients

• 1 medium head of cauliflower, chopped (about 20 oz)
• 3 cups veggie broth
• 3/4 cup chopped white onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp celery seed
• 1 tbsp finely diced fresh sage
• 1 tsp crushed garlic
• handful of kale microgreens
croutons
• 1 pound parsnips, cubed
• 2 tbsp melted coconut oil
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp stone ground mustard*
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Place the white onion, the bay leaf, the sage, the garlic, and the celery seed in a medium saucepan. Add just enough broth to cover.
2. Placed pot, with lid, over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until onions are very soft.
3. Add the cauliflower and more broth to cover. Replace lid and continue to cook until cauliflower softens, about 12-18 min. Add the remaining broth, if any.
4. Remove from heat, allow to cool, and the puree. Set aside.
for the croutons
5. Preheat oven to 450
6. Combine the coconut oil, lemon juice,mustard, brown sugar, black pepper, and salt.
7. Toss the parsnips in the mustard mix.
8. Roast for 10 minutes, stir, and roast for another 8-10 min.
9. To serve, divide soup among bowls and add croutons. Add a handful of microgreens.

Notes

* I love love love Inglehoffer stone ground mustard. Yes, it's vegan. And addicting. And I don't know what the croutons would taste like with other mustards. Inglehoffer isn't paying me to say any of this. I just really like it.

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Other posts in the Friendly Beasts series:

• Donkey, shaggy and brown — Chocolate Stuffed Gingerbread
• Cow, all white and red — Braised and Pickled Watermelon Radishes