“crazy u” purple cauliflower & potato soup

This month I’ve been exploring the color purple as foundation in a few recipes. This purple cauliflower & potato soup is the latest purple recipe following purple kale chips, roasted purple brussels sprouts, and brussels sprouts queadillas.

I get inspiration for recipes from many sources, starting obviously with music if you follow this blog, but sometimes from everyday people that I encounter. This one began during a visit to my local farmers’ market. One of the merchants introduced me to the most beautiful purple daikon, oblong in shape, bi-colored with a deep purple top and creamy white near the bottom. I went straight purple beast mode and bought everything purple they had and then supplemented with other purple ingredients I found later.

Foodwise I can get pretty maniacal when it comes to the senses and developing recipes. Color, aroma, texture all become things I’m stressedand excited by, as well as incredibly dialed into in an effort to get that perfect combination. The minutia and details take on elevated meaning that contribute more often than not to great food. I must have made some version of a purple soup at least 5 times in one week before settling on this Purple Cauliflower and Potato Soup. I started with beets, purple cauliflower, purple daikon, purple potatoes, basalmic vinegar, dark purple grapes, and red onions as varying base ingredients, but never got the right flavor, color or texture profiles I wanted. After trial and error I was able to narrow down the ingredient list as well as dial in the right sequence and quantities to balance the flavor. I settled on potatoes, cauliflower, daikon and red onions.

Flavor Profile of Purple Cauliflower & Potato Soup

Purple potatoes and cauliflower are both moderate in flavor, just north of bland, but they’re also very malleable. Daikon, depending on which part you use can be spicy to mild in flavor. The top part is usually the mildest and well suited to eating raw. The middle tends to be sweeter and for my money is the best part of the daikon given has a mix of both spicy and sweet flavors. The tip is the spiciest part. I wanted a hint of the spiciness with some of that sweetness so I only used the middle relying on cooking to bring out more sweetness. I actually sauted both the onions and daikon first to bring some of the caramelization to the dish. Lastly I needed to somehow bring the dish together, something that helped to marry all the flavors.

The spices and dried thyme help do just that. The smokiness and earthiness of the paprika as well as the herbal flavor of the thyme act as flavor connectors. The finishing step which I owe to fellow blogger Food. Love. Tog. I came across her instagram feed while taking a break from the lab and she reminded me to toast spice seeds first for more flavor. At that point I grabbed the few spice seeds I had on hand (sesame, fennel, and peppercorns), toasted them and then coarsely ground them to be used both as a garnish and surface layer flavoring. The spice mix gives you that initial hit of flavor priming you for the main ingredients, while also aiding in mouth feel and texture.

Health Benefits of Purple Cauliflower & Potato Soup

• Cauliflower has a rich supply of health-promoting phytochemicals which aid in heart and brain disease
• Daikon improves digestion, boosts immune system, and is anti-inflammotory agent
• Fennel seeds aid in respiratory ailments like asthma, diabetes, and fertility

Key tips for cooking Purple Cauliflower & Potato Soup

• For more of a roasted flavor in the soup roast the main ingredients vs. boiling. Note, you may lose some of the bright purple color
• Color tends to wash out when cooking and will vary depending on the vegetables. Red onions and the daikon definitely will whether you boil or roast. If boiling the potatoes will bleed purple into the water so when you blend, that color is still there.
• Consider size of vegetables and impact it will have on cooking time and thus flavor. Smaller cut vegetables will cook faster and lose less color, but want have as intense of flavor.
• Definitely toast your spices to get more flavor into this dish
• Depending on desired level of creaminess, plan to add more water or stock.

Dope beats, fresh eats. Enjoy this purple cauliflower & potato soup. It’s visually stunning, full of good for you vibrant vegetables, and tastes damn good!

Purple Potato and Cauliflower Soup w/ Fennel Spice

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American, Modern Soul Food

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

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Ingredients

Soup

• 1 purple cauliflower florets
• 4 medium purple potatoes peeled and chopped
• 1 large purple daikon peeled and chopped
• 3-4 cups water + more as needed
• 1/2 cup vegetable stock
• 1 tsp Dried thyme
• 1 tsp ground garlic
• 1/2 tbsp Smoked paprika
• 1 tsp Kosher Salt
• 3 tbsp extra virgin oil

Spice Mix

• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1/2 tsp sesame seeds
• 1 tbsp Pistachios
• 1/2 tsp Peppercorns
• 1 small red onion, sliced

Instructions

1. Saute red onions and daikon over medium heat for 3-4 minutes

2. Add cauliflower florets, potatoes, a pinch of salt, and cover with water.

3. Boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium and continue cooking until vegetables are fork tender.
4. Using a blender, mix the vegetables with the vegetable stock from the cooking.
5. Return the soup to the pot, add the thyme, garlic, paprika and salt and mix well. Cook for 5 - 10 more minutes, stirring well and adjusting the seasoning as needed. If the soup is too thick, add more water until desired consistency.
6. Toast pistachios in skillet over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Remove pistachios and add seeds stirring often for 1-2 minutes.
7. Grind pistachios and seeds coarsely with mortar and pestle.

Recipe Notes

• For more of a roasted flavor in the soup roast the main ingredients vs. boiling. Note, you may lose some of the bright purple color
• Color tends to wash out when cooking and will vary depending on the vegetables. Red onions and the daikon definitely will whether you boil or roast. If boiling the potatoes will bleed purple into the water so when you blend, that color is still there.
• Consider size of vegetables and impact it will have on cooking time and thus flavor. Smaller cut vegetables will cook faster and lose less color, but want have as intense of flavor.
• Definitely toast your spices to get more flavor into this dish
• Depending on desired level of creaminess, plan to add more water or stock.