An Easy Creamy Potato Soup Recipe with Cauliflower to increase the creamy factor! This soup recipe is creamy, cheesy, warming, and delicious, while also being a healthy soup recipe with no heavy cream!
Whether we are in the middle of a freezing polar vortex or have beautiful warm weather outside, I am always ready to add soup to a meal or to even make it the main course. My Roasted Butternut Squash Soup Recipe is a favorite, even for people who don't like squash!
Soup can be so many things - warm, comforting, healthy, rich, light and sometimes not so healthy. Creamy soups in particular are a favorite of mine but a lot of them use heavy cream to make them luscious and creamy.
I started making Potato Soup after eating it often when I lived in the UK. Potatoes are a staple in meals in Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England.
Heavy cream is delicious, don't get me wrong! But the calories and fat are so high that they just don't fit into my every day calorie budget.
Luckily, there are other ways to make a creamy soup and reduce the calories but NOT the flavor!
The Secret to a Creamy Soup
Potatoes, by nature, have a creaminess to them and lend themselves well to creamy dishes. But often there is a lot of butter or cream added to increase the creaminess.
So I jumped on to the cauliflower revolution and replaced half of the potatoes in my usual Potato Soup recipe with cauliflower.
Adding cauliflower increases the healthy aspect of this soup recipe while also naturally creating a more creamy soup.
Cauliflower has had such a resurgence in popularity lately. People are using it as steaks to replace meat in a meal, in place of pasta in a casserole, in place of chicken in a curry, and in pizza crust instead of flour.
Cauliflower is full of fiber, nutrients, and antioxidants so it is a great ingredient to add to your recipes.
I can't get onboard with the pizza crust, though. Sorry! I have tried it but I just don't love it! If I were gluten free, it would be a great option, though!
Another huge benefit of cauliflower is that it adds a creaminess without adding a ton or calories and fat! Potato soup is delicious but can sometimes be grainy. People often add heavy cream to smooth out a soup. But I prefer to skip the calories and fat if possible!
Tips to making the Perfect Potato Soup
- The type of potato that you use depends on the texture that you want in your recipe. For this soup recipe, I recommend Yukon Golds if you want to keep some chunks of potatoes in the final soup. Yukon potatoes tend to hold their shape because they are a medium-starch potato. If you want to completely puree this soup, you can use Russet potatoes. They have a low starch level and tend to be dry and fluffy - perfect for smooth soups and mashed potatoes!
- For a bit of contrast and texture, puree half of the soup and then add it back to the potato and cauliflower chunks in the pot. You can puree all of it if you like but I prefer some chunks to bite into!
- Cut the cauliflower and potatoes to about the same size before cooking them. This ensures that they cook evenly and completely. Go for chunks that are roughly 1 inch wide.
- Add your choice of vegetables to alter the flavor and texture, either before pureeing or after. You can also add toppings to make this soup suit any taste or menu!
Variations on this Creamy Potato Soup Recipe
This soup is delicious as-is and makes a great starter for any meal. I have also served it as a main course with a salad as a starter. This is the perfect meal for me for so many reasons!
It's healthy, easy to make in advance and reheat when I'm hungry and it is great to serve to a crowd!
Here are some variations to make this soup fit any menu and any taste preferences:
- For a slightly tangy flavor, add ½ cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt to this soup after pureeing the potatoes and cauliflower. Think baked potatoes or mashed potatoes! The flavor is the perfect match for this soup!
- Top this creamy potato soup with homemade or store-bought croutons. Make your own croutons with bread when it starts to go stale. Just cut into chunks, toss with some melted butter or olive oil and add your desired seasonings like garlic, dried basil or oregano, and salt and pepper. Toast them up in the oven and place on top of the soup!
- Chopped green onions or fresh herbs add a freshness to this soup recipe that just can't be beat! Chop up some chives, basil, oregano, thyme, or cilantro and sprinkle on top before serving.
- Bacon really does make everything better! Sometimes you just want the taste of bacon but don't want to eat a lot of it for healthy reasons. Adding crumbled bacon and stirring it into this soup or just sprinkling some crumbled bacon on top is the perfect compliment to this soup! You get all of the flavor of the bacon without eating a large portion!
- Serve homemade bread with this soup for a hearty and homey meal! Try my Focaccia recipe or my Irish Soda Bread for a traditional Irish meal!
I hope you love this creamy potato soup recipe as much as I do! Let me know in the comments how you decide to serve it!
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Easy Creamy Potato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 Tablespoon flour
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 5 cups 5 cups whole milk
- 1 pound (about 4 medium) potatoes Yukon Gold or Russet Potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 1 pound (about 1 ½ cups) cauliflower florets, fresh or frozen
- 2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon ground red pepper cayenne
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- 2 cups shredded cheese any combo of Sharp or Mild Cheddar, Mozzarella or Swiss
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the flour and stir constantly for one minute. Add the garlic and cook for 15 seconds
- Add the milk, potatoes, cauliflower, salt and peppers. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Cool slightly.
- If you want to puree all of the soup, work in batches. Ladle the soup into a food processor or high power blender until smooth. Return soup to saucepan and cook over medium heat until heat through. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese/s until melted.
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