This soup recipe is a little more involved in that you need to cook the cauliflower in a soup pot on the stove first, but the extra effort is well worth it.

What You Need:

1 large head of cauliflower broken into florets
2 C chicken broth
2 T chicken bouillon granules
2 C half and half
2 C milk
1 carrot, shredded
1 bay leaf
1/4 t garlic powder
1/2 C instant mashed potato flakes
1 (8 oz) pkg. cheddar cheese, shredded

How to Make It:

Place the cauliflower, broth and bouillon granules into a large soup pot over high heat.
Bring the mixture to a brisk boil.
Place the heat on low, cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until the cauliflower is fork tender.
Remove the cauliflower from the pot and mash with a potato masher.
Pour the broth mixture from the soup pot into a 6 qt. crock pot and then add the mashed cauliflower.
Pour the cream and milk into the crock pot.
Add the shredded carrots, bay leaf and garlic powder.
Stir to combine the ingredients together well.
Cover the crock pot and cook on low for 3 hours.
Stir the potato flakes into the crock pot, cover and continue cooking on low for 40 minutes or until the soup is a thick as you like.
Remove the bay leaf.
Place the soup, in batches, into the blender and blend until very smooth or, if available, use a hand blender.
Return the blended soup to the crock pot.
Sprinkle in the cheese and stir to combine.
Recover and continue cooking 15 to 20 minutes or until the cheese has completely melted into the soup.

Serving Size: 8

Tips:

When winter cold hits there is nothing better than a warm cup of soup. This soup not only warms you up but gives you that cozy feeling all the way through. Other types of cheese can be used in this recipe. If you like chunky soups, forego the blender, add the cheese and enjoy. Garnish with some fresh chopped parsley or chives.