Cauliflower and Mustard Soup with Melted Cheese Crispy Crumbs 53-71 calories + topping 30 calories
This soup recipe always makes me feel warm inside – cauliflower cheese is such a comfort food, and this soup gives you all the comfort with hardly any of the calories. If you’re not fasting, just add more cheese and crumbs, or… if you fancy a really satisfying supper, serve with sourdough bread topped with the rarebit from the Rarebit Mushrooms recipe!
For a vegan version, use ‘Nooch’ – nutritional yeast – which has bags of savoury ‘umami’ flavour -and if you’re a fan of mustard, increase the amount to taste. #
Makes 4 servings
Calories per serving: 53 made with almond milk; 71 made with semi-skimmed milk, plus 30 with topping
Preparation time: 8 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
½ tsp butter or olive oil 19–23 cals
1 white onion 38 cals
1 medium cauliflower, florets only 100 cals
600ml homemade vegetable stock 15 cals or water and 2 tsp Marigold bouillon 24 cals
2–3 tsp Dijon mustard 15–30 cals
200ml almond milk 26 cals or semi-skimmed milk 98 cals
30g reduced-fat mature cheddar cheese 65 cals
20g breadcrumbs 55 cals
salt and pepper
1. Add the butter or oil to a large non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and fry for 2 minutes then add the cauliflower and let it brown lightly for 3 minutes.
2. Add the stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for 18–20 minutes, or until the cauliflower is soft enough to blend.
3. Add 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard and the almond or semi-skimmed milk and blend, using a stick blender or move the mixture to a blender goblet to blend, until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you like more mustard, add it now.
4. To serve, preheat the grill to medium. Divide the soup between heatproof bowls. Gently sprinkle over the cheese and breadcrumbs so they don’t sink. Place the bowls under the grill and let cook until the crumbs are brown and the cheese has melted.
More ideas from the 5:2 Kitchen This soup freezes well (but without the cheese and crumb topping). Defrost and reheat, then add topping. Try blue cheese in place of cheddar in the cheese crumb topping. Or use wholegrain mustard in an alternative topping: simply mix together 1 level tablespoon 0% fat crème fraîche (6 calories) and 1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard (8 calories) and swirl into each portion just before serving.
Freezes well before adding the topping.