Easy 3-Ingredient Cauliflower Soup – Simple and delicious recipe for pureed Cauliflower Soup, needs only 3 ingredients. Vegan or vegetarian, gluten free, low carb, healthy, light.
A few weeks ago, my friend Garrett McCord– co-author of Melt, the Art of Macaroni and Cheese and blogger at Vanilla Garlic— wrote to me on Facebook:
“Your italian roasted cauliflower salad is epic. Making it for a potluck tomorrow.”
(Side note – it IS epic – if you want to try it click here!)
We began chatting about our favorite cauliflower recipes, and he pointed out a recipe on our friend Elise Bauer’s website – Simple Cauliflower Soup, which was actually inspired by Garrett and blogged about by Elise. I tried it the next evening with dinner. Garrett recommended roasting the cauliflower first, but I was feeling lazy so I made it the way Elise describes on her site, which took all of 10 minutes.
Holy. Moly. I can’t describe how easy and tasty this soup is!! I am officially addicted. Since my conversation with Garrett I’ve made it several times, and I’ve discovered some things along the way. First of all, the soup really only needs 3 ingredients – cauliflower, salt and pepper (well, and water, if you’re counting that as an ingredient). Adding a high quality butter is highly recommended, but it’s actually delicious without the butter too– which means it can be made completely dairy free. Don’t skimp on the salt, it greatly enhances the flavor of the cauliflower. Blending this soup produces a silky, velvety texture and a really creamy flavor without a drop of cream. Once you’ve nailed the basic concept, which couldn’t be easier, you can dress it up with all kinds of condiments. Garrett recommended a pinch of blue cheese, which was heavenly. Elise tops hers with chives and olive oil or truffle oil/salt. Last week I topped mine with za’atar and a drizzle of sesame oil. So many possibilities!
This is also the perfect opportunity to give my friend Elise a shout-out. If you’ve ever Googled a recipe, chances are you’ve been to Elise’s website, Simply Recipes. She has been a food blogger for years and has managed to blog about many, many fantastic dishes. She does it with intelligence, simplicity, and class. Her recipes work. She’s a kitchen rock star and I highly recommend her website. See her version of the soup here, and read more about Elise here. I’ve posted links to some of her other recipes as well as Garrett’s below.
This soup can be made vegan or vegetarian (if you’re okay with dairy add the butter, it’s so worth it!). It’s naturally gluten free, low carb, low calorie, creamy, filling and amazing. It’s also kosher for Passover! Even though it’s a light soup, I find that more often than not it satiates my hunger. If you have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix, the result will be even more velvety. Highly recommended!
Other Great Recipe Ideas
Simply Recipes: Roasted Root Vegetables with Tomatoes and Kale
Vanilla Garlic: Asparagus with Lime
Simply Recipes: Broccoli Slaw with Cranberry Orange Dressing
Vanilla Garlic: Earl Grey – Kumquat Marmalade
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Easy Cauliflower Soup
Ingredients
- 2 pounds cauliflower (1 head)
- Salt and pepper
- Unsalted butter (optional, recommended) - you can sub olive oil or a high quality vegan butter like Earth Balance, if you like
Optional topping ideas
- Drizzle of olive oil or sesame oil, crumbled blue cheese, parmesan, za'atar
NOTES
Instructions
- Remove the leaves and tough core from the cauliflower. Chop into small florets and carefully clean them.
- In a medium saucepan, bring 1 quart (4 cups) of water to a boil. Stir in 2 tsp of salt till dissolved. Pour in the cauliflower florets. Bring the water back to a boil and cover. Let the cauliflower cook for about 5 minutes till very soft and tender.
- Remove the florets from their cooking water using a slotted spoon; reserve the salted cooking water.
- Place the cooked cauliflower into a blender, filling it halfway. Carefully pour in cooking water, adding till it reaches about halfway up the cooked cauliflower.
- Cover the blender carefully and blend, scraping the sides as needed, until the soup becomes a smooth puree. You may need to add more cooking water to achieve a soup-like texture. The longer you blend, the more silky and smooth the soup becomes. Add salt, pepper, and butter to taste. I use about 1 tbsp butter for a whole head of cauliflower (1/2 tbsp per batch). Salt is your friend here, if the soup is tasting bland don't be afraid to add more. You can also add some good quality olive oil or Earth Balance instead of butter if you'd like a richer flavor without dairy.Repeat process with the remaining batch of cauliflower. Serve soup hot. Leftovers will keep for 1-2 days in a covered tupperware container; soup will need to be stirred after reheating.
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
Super easy, super simple, simply clean and delicious! Tastes so fresh, and I’d had my cauliflower a week in the fridge besides!
I love this soup! Can it be frozen?
Thank you!
Since you can freeze cooked cauliflower (which I have done successfully) I don’t see why you can’t freeze cauliflower soup. I say go for it! Good luck!🤞
This recipe sounds great! Do you end up using all of the water in the finished soup? I’m wondering, if I use an immersion blender after cooking the florets, whether I’d want to take out some of the water first or just leave it all in and blend everything as is. I have a couple of other simple soup recipes like this and I find the immersion blender easier than transferring to a blender and then back into the pot or a serving bowl. But would blending it with all of the water make it too thin?
You do not use all of the water here – it will be too thin that way. If using an immersion blender, remove most of the water first, then add back as needed for the proper texture.
Hi Tori
Thank you this is one of my go-to recipes! I love it – so easy, healthy and deliciously smooth and creamy tasting (without cream!) FYI sometimes I use a tsp of Wonton soup base mix instead of salt and it works well too 🙂
Tetyana
Tori this is an easy and delicious recipe! I roasted the florets with a thick sliced garden tomato at 450 until the tomatoes caramelized and cauliflower had a nice brown char; (Salt, pepper and drizzle of olive oil); line the pan wil parchment (jelly roll pan)
-purée in small batches utilizing the juices from the pan and vegetable broth if needed. This was delicious and easy!
Best Recipe ever! So simple and SO incredibly delicious
I love this recipe and make it all the time. However, I am having some health issues and need to make it without salt. I am also allergic to onions and garlic. What would you use to spice it up? Please be specific. I am a rookie in the kitchen. Thanks!
Clean, simple recipe. Thank you!
Terrific recipe, as Usual: just what I was in the mood for on a chilly night. We added a sprinkle of Siricha sauce on top. Yeah, it looked pretty.
I clicked on Your blender recommendation which led to Vitamix 5200 (I think). Why that particular model over others? Thanks.
Bernadette– that is the Vitamix model I own, which is why I recommend it here. I really like it. But any blender works!
Wow! I can’t believe how easy this is to make and how great it tastes. I topped mine with butter, Hawaiian Red Sea salt and pepper. I will make this again many times. I’m so happy I tried it.
I gently blanched 2 large heads of cauliflower in water, for about 4 minutes. I then blended the cauliflower in my Vitamix, using the water that the cauliflower was blanched in. I blended in three separate batches, transferring each one to a large pot when completely creamed. In a smaller final batch, I added 1 cup butter, and some onion and garlic which I had sauteed earlier. I also added some hot horseradish. Final step was to add that last batch to the large saucepan and heat the whole lot through, adding any salt or more horseradish to taste. I always top the bowls of soup with some chopped pear and crumbled blue cheese. I have also added unsalted, raw cashews to the final batch at times. It’s a wonderful soup that is very versatile.
I forgot to add butter but don’t think it was missed. I decided to use chicken broth and omit the salt (there’s a ton in the broth). Also added a bit of curry powder along with the garlic and pepper. The end result was delicious. Such an easy recipe and you can customize it so easily! Thanks.
So you used chicken broth in place of the water? How much did you use? I love to try it with the broth everything cooked in broth taste so yummy like it has butter in salt in it already!
soooo…. easy and delicouse creamy cauliflower soup. I reduce the salt to 1tsp instead of 2 tsp, will make this delicious soup more often. Thanks Tori for sharing this recipe!
I served it cold the next day. It was great!
Can I use broccoli? Cauliflower is about $5 a head here. Ouch!!!!
Yeah what is going on w cauliflower production? I saw it by the pound and most of it you cut away!
Does anyone know if you can use an emmersion blender instead? I only have a magic bullet, not a real blender.
Morgan, yes you can do that, no problem.
Would you use all the water when using the immersion blender?
Deb– I wouldn’t, it will be too watery. Instead, strain the cauliflower out, place back in the pot, and reserve the cooking water. Add it back slowly as you blend, as directed in the recipe above.
A deliciously simple recipe! Thank you so much. As a student, I do not get much time, nor have the patience, to cook something more elaborate, but this simple recipe is sooooo good. I made it the other day as the recipe said and it came out just perfect. I added two green chillies and a bit of ginger to make it a bit flavourful though. I look forward to more simple recipes from you.
I just made this and it is delicious. I have been trying different ways to make cauliflower and I did not any of it. I will be making this from now on.
I just made this soup tonight. Love it! I added onions and curry. It’s wonderful that this can be made as thick as the recipe says, but can also be thinner if so desired. I am going to make this quite often as I like cauliflower.
Tori, this was amazing!!! My daughter & I went Vegan over a year ago, but we want more simply, quick, delicious recipes and with just a few ingredients! This cauliflower soup was on point, we had some sliced porta bella mushrooms and fresh spinach, I sautéed with little garlic pepper & salt in a little olive oil!!!!! Added to the cauliflower soup!! OMG!! We almost ate the whole batch! Thank you for what you’ve created. All the best!!
Loved it!