Cauliflower & Cheese Soup

I often have pots of soup on the go, and this one was an experiment as the kids all love cauliflower cheese.  I wanted to make it into a meal in a bowl, so with some extra mature cheddar from Andrew Gordon, our local butcher and fine food store, we were ready to go.

I was pleasantly surprised by the Little Black Bomber Cheese from Snowdonia UK.  It was quite soft and crumbly and was perfect for making soup.  I even tried some on charcoal biscuits and it was quite a mild taste with a lovely creamy texture.  It’s a new find that will now be regularly on our shopping list as the kids really loved it.

Ingredients

• 1 extra large cauliflower, or 2 small cauliflowers
• 200g smooth and creamy extra mature cheddar, I used the little black bomber.
• 2 small onions, or 1 large onion
• 4 large potatoes
• 1 fennel
• 1 litre of stock.  I used chicken as it’s what I had in the fridge.  You could use beef or vegetable.
• 2 litres of water & half litre of milk.
• salt and pepper to taste.
• ciabatta to serve.

Method

1. Set your stock on to cook.  For this recipe, I used ready made stock from my fridge.
2. Add stock to 2 litres of water and 0.5 litre of milk and bring to the boil.  Turn down to a simmer and add a few pinches of salt.
3. Chop vegetables into reasonably small sized chunks and just add them all to the pan.  You’ll need enough liquid to cover your chopped vegetables to start off with, so just add a little more water if you need to.
4. Simmer for 25 minutes, or until all vegetables are soft. You may have to add a little extra water depending on how long you simmer for.
5. Liquidise, or blend in the pot.
6. Take the soup off the heat and add the cheese cut into small pieces.
7. Stir the soup until all the cheese is melted and blend again if needed.
8. Add salt and pepper to taste, and you’re done.