Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup restores healthy-eating pattern

Sitting around our house sniffling after our grandmunchkin departed his week from Camp G&G, we knew we had to do something vastly different than we had in our past seven days. Meals had pretty much revolved around his dining schedule; to a certain extent, our diet marched in step with his finger foods and whatever a 1-year-old would eat. Now the time had arrived to get back to our strategic healthy ways.

I had been saving a recipe for Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup from the recent “perfect pairings” feature of the September 2011 Prevention magazine. I was intrigued by this dish because I hadn’t exactly been able to see how a soup was going to materialize out of the simple ingredients of fresh mushrooms, leeks, and cauliflower. I should have trusted my source—Prevention, which around our house is a major resource for all things healthy. This soup was delicious and simple to make.

The key involves pureeing in a blender the combined cauliflower and leeks that for about 20 minutes have simmered in 5 cups water. After pureeing until the mixture is smooth and thick, you return the soup to its original kettle and stir in sauteed fresh mushrooms and grated Parmesan. I sprinkled a little extra Parmesan on top and also dotted the soup with some herb-seasoned croutons I had on hand.

This is not a soup you’d expect to find on the dinner table every day, but it was perfectly delightful and a good trailblazer to get us back on our Post-Camp G&G healthy-eating track.

Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms

4 thin leeks, white and pale green parts, sliced

2 pound cauliflower, cut into florets

1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan

salt (or salt substitute) and pepper to taste

In pot over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to bowl. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pot and cook leeks, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in cauliflower and 5 cups water. Simmer 20 minutes. In blender puree mixture (in batches) until smooth. Return soup to pot; add mushrooms and Parmesan. Season to taste. Bring soup just to a simmer. Ladle soup into bowls. Among the bowls drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil. If you like, top soup with croutons. Makes 6 servings.