Easy Cauliflower Leek and Potato Soup

This cauliflower leek and potato soup is a creamy, comforting dish that's easy to make, healthy and delicious. Quick and simple to prepare, it's ready in only about 30 minutes. See serving tips and variations at the bottom of the post.

This cauliflower leek and potato soup is a delicious alternative to classic leek and potato soup. The addition of the cauliflower creates an extra layer of flavour, which makes for a more interesting dish. This soup has a naturally silky smooth, creamy texture even though it doesn't contain any flour or cream. It's vegan, gluten free and nutritious. One portion contains only approx. 100 calories.

This healthy leek potato cauliflower soup is also quick and easy to prepare and ready in 4 simple steps. It involves making an easy soup base then adding the vegetables and stock and simmering everything together until tender then simply pureeing the soup. The cauliflower and leek create a delicious flavour combination while the potatoes produce a naturally creamy texture and add substance.

I used a handful of spices and herbs, which enhance the flavour of this simple dish, but you can easily tweak the ingredients to suit your taste (see my tips at the bottom of the post).

Make a large batch and enjoy over a few days!

Cauliflower leek and potato soup ingredients and substitutions

• Cauliflower: use a fresh, firm cauliflower without discoloration or soft patches.
• Potatoes: I recommend using a starchy/floury potato variety (such as Russets or Maris Piper).
• Onion.
• Celery.
• Herbs and spices: bay leaf, allspice, onion granules, nutmeg and lemon thyme (you can use regular, instead, alternatively use 1 teaspoon dried).
• Stock: use either vegetable or chicken stock (for a non-vegetarian version).
• Oil and butter: my favourite combination for sauteing vegetables - produces great flavour and helps prevent vegetables from browning. Use regular or plant butter.
• Salt and pepper: I recommend white pepper, but you can use black, instead, if you prefer.

Step-by-step recipe instructions

1. Make soup base: Heat the oil, add the bay leaf, allspice berries, onion and celery and cook gently for about 3 minutes stirring often. Add the leek and continue cooking for 3 more minutes.

2. Add potato and cauliflower: Add the cubed potatoes, chopped cauliflower, thyme and pepper. Pour in most of the stock, cover and bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer gently for 15-20 minutes (until the potatoes are fully cooked, but try not to overcook them).

3. Puree: Remove from the heat, discard the bay leaf and allspice berries then add the onion granules and nutmeg. Puree until velvety smooth and creamy (a hand blender should work well, but you can puree the soup in a high-speed blender, if preferred).

4. Adjust flavour and serve: Add the rest of the stock, if needed, adjust the seasoning and serve.

Serving suggestions

I often serve this creamy cauliflower leek potato soup with crusty bread or croutons. Other serving ideas include shredded cheese (cheddar, gruyere or similar), fresh herbs (such as parsley or more thyme) as well as leftover rotisserie chicken, chopped ham or bacon for a more substantial meal (see also Polish potato soup with bacon). I also like to garnish it with red pepper flakes for more colour.

TIP: I don't recommend serving this soup with cream (including coconut) as this will dilute the flavour. The soup has a creamy texture as it is so it's not necessary to add cream.

Variations

This easy potato leek and cauliflower soup is extremely adaptable and you can adjust the recommended amounts of vegetables depending on your preference. For example, you can use more cauliflower and less potatoes, or add more leek (and omit the onion) making sure the ratio of vegetables to stock remains the same. You can also add the following optional ingredients:

• Garlic: add 1-2 cloves along with the onion and celery.
• Paprika: add 1 teaspoon for colour.
• Spinach: add a handful towards the end of cooking.

How to adjust the texture

I love the silky smooth, creamy texture of this simple cauliflower leek and potato soup, but you can also serve it with chunks of vegetables in it. This is easy to do by either partly blending the soup or mashing it using a potato masher. This will thicken the soup but won't 'hide' the vegetables in it. (I used a similar method in my root vegetable soup recipe).

Top tips

• Use fresh, firm cauliflower without discoloration or soft patches.
• Use starchy/floury all-rounder potatoes such as Russets (or Maris Piper in UK).
• Try not to overcook this soup so the vegetables do not become too soft and mushy. Remove from the heat once the potatoes are tender.
• You may not need to add much salt (if any) but be generous with the pepper.
• Reserve some of the stock and add later, if needed, once the soup is pureed. This will allow you to adjust the consistency according to your preference.
• Puree the soup until silky smooth and creamy using a hand blender or high-speed blended (for a super creamy texture).
• Refrigerate leftover potato leek cauliflower soup for up to 3 days.
• Freeze for up to 3 months.

Related soup recipes to try next

• Creamy Zucchini and Potato Soup
• Mushroom Potato Soup
• Chicken and Potato Vegetable Soup

See also these other easy soup recipes including this collection of creamy vegan soups.

Recipe

Keep in touch!

If you make this vegan cauliflower leek and potato soup recipe I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Did you add other ingredients? Let me know in the comments below, thanks:)

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