Golden Cauliflower Soup with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds & Chili Oil
👨🍳 Chefy Tip: Remove the garlic early if it starts to brown — you want soft, not bitter. Blend the soup hot, not cooled, and stir in more salt at the end than you think you need.
Flavor Profile
Ingredients
Shop ingredientsInstructions
Preheat oven to 425°F. Toss cauliflower florets with 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp turmeric, salt, and black pepper on a sheet pan. Place the garlic head cut-side down on the same pan drizzled with a little oil. Roast 20-25 minutes until cauliflower is golden brown at the edges and garlic is soft.
While cauliflower roasts, toast pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until they start to pop and turn golden — about 3-4 minutes. Remove immediately and set aside.
Heat remaining 1 tbsp olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add diced onion and cook until soft and translucent — about 5 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 tsp turmeric and stir 30 seconds.
Add roasted cauliflower to the pot. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out of their skins into the pot. Add vegetable broth and coconut milk. Bring to a simmer.
Blend with an immersion blender until completely smooth and velvety. If too thick, add broth a splash at a time. Stir in lemon juice and season with salt.
Ladle into bowls. Top with toasted pumpkin seeds, a swirl of chili oil, and fresh herbs. Serve hot.
Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable that contains glucosinolates, which convert to sulforaphane when chewed or chopped — a compound studied for neuroprotective properties. Pumpkin seeds are one of the richest food sources of both zinc and magnesium, two minerals involved in cognitive function and neural signaling. Combining turmeric with black pepper increases the bioavailability of curcumin. Capsaicin in chili oil triggers the release of endorphins.