This Roasted Cauliflower White Bean Soup is one of my favorites to keep on heavy rotation during soup season! Not only does it taste incredible with the caramelized cauliflower and creamy white beans - it's also so easy to make and loaded with nutrition. True comfort food!
As a dietitian, I love cozying up with a large bowl of creamy soup! And this roasted cauliflower soup is such a great option for next time you want something really nourishing and easy. Make a big batch and enjoy it for a couple of days or freeze half of it for later!
This recipe was inspired by my Butternut Squash Soup and Roasted Red Pepper Soup. Great soups can be made by roasting some hearty vegetables & blending them up broth. Serve this cauliflower soup with sourdough croutons or lemony breadcrumbs on top or add your favorite protein to turn it into a main dish!
Jump to:
- Key Ingredients and Substitutions
- How to Make Roasted Cauliflower White Bean Soup
- Dietitian Tip
- Video of How to Make Cauliflower White Bean Soup
- Variations
- How to Serve Cauliflower White Bean Soup
- Storage for Cauliflower White Bean Soup
- Equipment
- Expert Tips
- FAQ
- Related
- Perfect for Pairing
- Want to Learn About Nutrition?
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
This Roasted Cauliflower and White Bean Soup is made with simple ingredients. Below is the ingredients list with some notes. Check the recipe card at the bottom for the full recipe.
- Cauliflower - cauliflower adds a slightly sweet flavor to this soup. You’ll use a head of fresh cauliflower. If you prefer, you can also buy pre-cut cauliflower florets. Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable that is high in fiber to support gut health. It also provides vitamin C, antioxidants, and potassium!
- Onion - I use a sweet onion or yellow onion, but you can use a white onion if it's what you have on hand. Onion provides an anti-inflammatory antioxidant called quercetin and also loads of flavor.
- Fresh Garlic - this recipe uses a full bulb of garlic. Roasted garlic cloves almost caramelize in the oven and add so much flavor.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil - a drizzle of olive oil is used for roasting the cauliflower. Olive oil contains heart-healthy fatty acids that have also been shown to support hormone health and brain health. If you prefer a milder flavor, you can use avocado oil instead.
- Fresh Thyme - to add a cozy flavor for the winter months.
- White Beans - using white beans is an easy way to make a creamy soup and also add nutrition including plant protein and dietary fiber. I use a can of Great Northern beans because they blend up really smoothly! You can easily replace them with cannellini beans, navy beans or garbanzo beans.
- Low Sodium Vegetable Broth - use a low sodium vegetable broth to better control the saltiness. If you prefer a heartier soup, use low sodium chicken broth or chicken stock.
- Lemon - a squeeze of lemon is the secret ingredient that brightens the flavor in this soup and ties everything together.
- Spices - a blend of cumin, paprika, and coriander. If you like a spicier soup, add some red pepper flakes.
- Salt & Black Pepper - a pinch of salt and pepper to tie everything together!
How to Make Roasted Cauliflower White Bean Soup
Below are the instructions for how to make this recipe with process shots that I hope are helpful!
- Step 1: Preheat oven to 400℉ (200°C). Line a baking sheet or sheet pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Roughly chop the cauliflower and onion. Remove the thyme leaves from the stems. Cut the top end off of a whole bulb of garlic. Add the cauliflower, onion, and garlic to the sheet pan in a single layer and coat them with olive oil, cumin, paprika, coriander, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle the thyme leaves on top. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-35 minutes. Oven times will vary, cauliflower is done cooking when it turns a golden brown color.
- Step 2: When the vegetables are done roasting, remove them from the oven and add everything to a blender. *To add the garlic cloves, carefully squeeze them out of the skin being careful not to get the skins in the blender.
- Step 3: Drain and rinse the white beans and add them to the blender along with the broth and lemon juice. Blend everything until smooth using a spatula to push down the sides as needed.
- Step 4: To heat the soup, pour it into a large soup pot or dutch oven and heat on medium heat until it starts to bubble. Then lower to medium-low or low heat for another minute or two. If it's too thick, add 1 more cup of broth or a little water.
Hint: if you don't have a high-speed blender, you can add the soup ingredients including the roasted vegetables, beans, broth, and lemon juice to a large pot and use a hand-held immersion blender to blend it.
Dietitian Tip
One of the easiest ways to ensure you'll eat your vegetables is to use them in a recipe like this one! Roasting the vegetables on a sheet-pan gives the soup so much extra flavor and the cauliflower almost caramelizes in the oven. The addition of white beans in this soup makes it extra creamy and eliminates the need for heavy creams and butter which tend to be high in saturated fats by replacing them with an ingredient high in dietary fiber and plant protein.
Video of How to Make Cauliflower White Bean Soup
Here's a video of how to make this recipe that I hope is helpful!
Variations
The best part about this creamy cauliflower soup recipe is that you can customize it according to your taste. Below are some ideas, but feel free to get creative!
- Spicy - if you like a spicy soup, add red pepper flakes or a dash of cayenne pepper.
- Creamier - if you're looking for an extra creamy texture add coconut cream or a can of coconut milk.
- Cheesy - add some parmesan cheese or melty mozzarella. Use nutritional yeast to add a cheesy flavor if you're vegan.
How to Serve Cauliflower White Bean Soup
- Top it with Homemade Croutons - top your bowl of hot soup with these delicious and simple homemade Sourdough Croutons on top.
- Add Your Favorite Protein - stir in cooked shredded chicken or a turkey meatballs for added protein!
- With a Salad and Side of Crusty Bread - serve it soup & salad style with a fall salad like this Beet & Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese or a Kale Harvest Salad.
Storage for Cauliflower White Bean Soup
- Refrigerator - store cooled leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
- Freezer - let the soup cool to room temperature and store leftovers in freezer-safe containers or freezer-safe bags in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
- Reheat on the stovetop, on low heat in a slow cooker, or in the microwave.
Equipment
A high-speed blender works best for this Cauliflower White Beans soup recipe, but you can use a regular blender or food processor. I have a Ninja Blender and love it. If you have more money to invest in a high-quality blender, invest in a Vitamix Blender!
Expert Tips
- Time-saving tip: If you want to save some time, feel free to use pre-cut cauliflower.
- If you prefer a thicker soup, you can use a bit less broth. Add more broth if you want a thinner soup.
- This recipe calls for Low Sodium broth so you can better control the saltiness. Give it a taste and add more salt as needed!
FAQ
While healthy means something different to everyone, this is a nutrient-rich option. Cauliflower, onion, garlic, and fresh thyme all provide a variety of vitamins and minerals, dietary fiber for a healthy gut, and antioxidants that support brain health and overall health! Extra virgin olive oil provides heart-healthy fats. White beans contain plant protein, dietary fiber, and several other nutrients including vitamin E which has been shown to support brain health.
Yes, this is a gluten-free recipe.
If using vegetable broth, yes, this recipe is vegan. If using chicken broth it is not.
Related
Looking for other dietitian recipes like this? Try these:
Perfect for Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Roasted Cauliflower Soup:
Want to Learn About Nutrition?
Here are some of my educational articles you may enjoy:
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! I would love to hear from you! If you made this recipe, please leave me a review below or tag me in a photo or story on Instagram. Your reviews help support me and make it possible for me to continue to create the recipes you know and love. 🙂 IG: @mallorythedietitian
📖 Recipe
Creamy Roasted Cauliflower White Bean Soup with Thyme
Equipment
- 1 soup pot
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower about 4 cups chopped
- ½ large yellow onion or 1 small yellow onion
- 1 bulb garlic
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, leaves removed from stems or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 4-5 cups low sodium vegetable broth or low sodium chicken broth
- 1 (15 oz) can Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed or your favorite white bean variety
- 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice about ½ large lemon or 1 small
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400℉ (200°C). Line a baking sheet or sheet pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Roughly chop the cauliflower and onion. Remove the thyme leaves from the stems. Cut the top end off of a whole bulb of garlic.
- Add the cauliflower, onion, and garlic to the sheet pan in a single layer and coat them with olive oil, paprika, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle the thyme leaves on top. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. Oven times will vary, cauliflower is done cooking when it turns a golden brown color.
- When the vegetables are done roasting, remove them from the oven and add everything to a blender. *To add the garlic cloves, carefully squeeze them out of the skin being careful not to get the skins in the blender.
- Drain and rinse the white beans and add them to the blender along with the broth and lemon juice. Blend everything until smooth using a spatula to push down the sides as needed.
- To heat the soup, pour it into a large soup pot or dutch oven and heat on medium heat until it starts to bubble. Then lower to medium-low or low heat for another minute or two. If it's too thick, add 1 more cup of broth. Add salt to taste.
- Hint: if you don't have a high-speed blender, you can add the soup ingredients including the roasted vegetables, beans, broth, and lemon juice to a large pot and use a hand-held immersion blender to blend it.
Video
Notes
- Time-saving tip: If you want to save some time, feel free to use pre-cut cauliflower.
- If you prefer a thicker soup, you can use a bit less broth. Add more broth if you want a thinner soup.
- This recipe calls for low sodium broth so you can better control the saltiness. Give it a taste and add more salt as needed!
- Refrigerator - store cooled leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
- Freezer - let the soup cool to room temperature and store leftovers in freezer-safe containers or freezer-safe bags in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat on the stovetop, on low heat in a slow cooker, or in the microwave.
Joni
This is my first time making a blended soup, and I really enjoyed it. What prompted me to try it is because it’s “creamy” without dairy. I didn’t have coriander and couldn’t even find it in the store, so for that I subbed 1/2 turmeric and 1/2 fennel pollen. I did opt for chicken broth instead of veggie broth. I thought the flavor and consistency were really good, and it goes great with sourdough bread!
Mallory
Hi Joni, Thank you so much for taking time to leave a comment!! I'm so happy you enjoyed it and love hearing all your delicious substitutions an additions, those sound delicious! 🙂 Sourdough is my favorite to have with this soup too. I hope you have a great day! -Mallory