Cauliflower Ham Soup

It was a dark and stormy night… no, really it was. There was a lot of wind, blowing snow, and I was not in the mood to dine out with my P.S. (Personal Shopper/ hubby). I had a head of cauliflower that needed to be used and a desire for soup. But I was lazy so I searched the freezer for packets of frozen diced peppers and celery. Half of my work was done!

Cauliflower Ham Soup

I love cauliflower but have never found a soup I liked that was mostly cauliflower. But cauliflower does plays well with others so if I throw in enough other vegetables, I end up with a soup we like. It’s mostly cabbage-like in flavor and I do add cabbage to many soups for that special touch.

Sauté onions until they begin to turn translucent.

I started my soup by dicing up some onion. I sautéed it with a drizzle of oil in a small soup pot.

Add peppers and celery and cook for several more minutes.

When the onion was beginning to turn translucent I added the frozen peppers (yellow and red this time, any color would do) and the frozen celery. I freeze celery when it’s been around awhile in the fridge, complete with the leafy tops, for soup situations just like this. I let the peppers and celery thaw and cook for a few minutes.

Stir in garlic and allow it to cook for several more minutes.

I added garlic, letting it cook for a few minutes then added 4 cups of chicken broth to the pot.

Add ham, broth and potatoes. Allow soup to come to a bubble at medium high. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Next I dug back into the freezer for the bags of diced ham I’d frozen after we cooked a large ham awhile back. It was about 3 cups or so of ham and perfect for this soup. I was beginning to wonder if I should name this Freezer Soup! I added the diced ham to the pot along with some chicken broth.

I added a couple of handfuls of diced potatoes to the pot of soup. I decided to call it “rustic” and left the peelings on, scrubbing them well before I diced them into about 3/4″ pieces. I let the soup come to a bubble then reduced the heat to medium low and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.

While the soup simmered I cored and chopped the head of cauliflower roughly into 1″ pieces. After the soup had simmered 10 minutes I added the cauliflower and a can of corn to the soup and again let it come to a boil. I reduced the heat and let it simmer another 20 minutes.

Add corn and again bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes.

Finally I added about a cup of frozen peas, taste tested for seasoning and added salt and pepper to taste. When the peas were heated through the soup was done.

Taste test for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as desired. Add peas. When peas are heated through, soup is ready to serve.

The soup had nice flavors: the ham added a smokiness to the broth and the vegetables were a nice blend. I often add cabbage to my soups for extra flavor and cauliflower being in the cabbage family lent a nice touch. It was delicious and satisfying. It was a good soup for a dark and stormy night.

Cauliflower Ham Soup

Servings: 6-8 servings
Difficulty: easy
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A hearty vegetable soup with ham using a head of cauliflower.

1 onion; diced
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 yellow sweet bell pepper; diced
1 red sweet bell pepper; diced
1/4 cup celery; diced
1 tablespoon garlic; mince
4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
3 cups ham; cubed
3 cups potatoes; skin on, cubed
1 cauliflower; core removed and roughly chopped in 1″ pieces
1 can whole kernel corn
1 cup frozen peas
salt and pepper as desired

Sauté onion in a good drizzle of oil in a soup pot until translucent. Add peppers and celery and sauté another 2-3 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for a minute or two.

Add broth, ham and potatoes and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes on medium low.

Add cauliflower and corn and again bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Add frozen peas. Taste test for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as desired.

When peas are heated through, soup is ready!