Super creamy light cauliflower soup delicately flavored with saffron with a nice tangy contrast from the sumac oil. Paleo, Vegan, Gluten Free, Vegetarian & Kosher

Ok, time to talk about New Year's resolutions. I know, it's January 13th and that might be a little late. A lot of people might have given up on them already. But for those of you who haven't yet, I have a question: how many of you made the resolution to change the way you eat? You know, 21-day vegan challenge? Master cleanse? Sugar detox? Just eating healthier in general?
I would bet anything though, that the number one diet-related New Year's resolution that people have made this year, is "going Paleo". I'm sure most of you are familiar with the term by now. But in case you're not sure what the whole Paleo concept is about, it's pretty simple. It's basically going back to the way our ancestors (aka, the cavemen) used to eat: no grains, legumes or dairy (although some people do consume small amounts of full fat, organic dairy), and plenty of local, organic fruits and vegetables, grass-fed, antibiotic-free meats, fish, nuts, seeds and fats.
That's it, in a nutshell
Whether we agree with the concept or not, is not really important. The fact is, a lot of people have decided to adopt that lifestyle, which means, they need ideas! Especially if they're looking for vegetarian and, even more challenging, vegan recipes.
This creamy saffron soup with sumac oil is one of our favorites that we hope you'll enjoy. More to come 🙂
What is sumac?
It is a tangy lemony tasting spice red spice made from grinding the berries of the non-poisonous sumac plant. Sumac is becoming very popular with chefs and home cooks in the US. It can be used to flavor salads like our Fattoush Salad, to bring sweet potato fries to the next level, to dust cauliflower steaks,
Other Caulifower Recipe for You:
PrintSaffron Cauliflower Soup w/ Sumac Oil - Paleo , vegan & Gluten Free
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 mins
- Yield: 8 cups 1x
Description
Super creamy cauliflower soup delicately flavored with saffron with a nice tangy contrast from the sumac oil.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 lbs frozen or fresh cauliflower florets
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- 5 cups of water or vegetable broth
- 20 saffron threads
For the Sumac Oil
- 2 tbsp plus 2 tsp sumac
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Sautée onion and garlic in olive oil on a soup pot, over medium heat, until onion is translucent, about 10 minutes.
- Add cauliflower florets, salt and pepper and continue cooking for 10-12 minutes
- Add 5 cups of water, bring to a boil and simmer until cauliflower is tender, 20-25 minutes.
- Turn off heat. Add saffron, stir and cover. Let the saffron steep for about 20 minutes.
- Blend soup in a blender until creamy.
- Serve hot or warm with a drizzle of sumac oil (recipe follows).
For the Sumac Oil
- Whisk all the ingredients together until well combined
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour 10 mins
- Category: soup
- Cuisine: Paleo , Vegan & Gluten Free
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 70
- Fat: 3.8
- Protein: 2.6
- Cholesterol: 0
Tamar Genger says
Yummy. I just got a big thing of saffron and I never know what to do with my sumac so I can't wait to try this. Just got to find cauliflower for a good price, it is so variable by me.
Vicky & Ruth says
So glad we could help. You can also use saffron to flavor rice and we have recipes with sumac if you want to search on our site.
Marie @ Not Enough Cinnamon.com says
I have a love/hate relationship with cauliflower. Sometimes I hate it, sometimes I love it. I'm weird. But I LOVE cauliflower soup, it's the best!
New year's resolution is not really my thing because I prefer to set goals on a weekly or monthly basis but healthy eating is always one of my priority!
★★★★★
Vicky & Ruth says
Cauliflower is an interesting vegetable. Not always in the mood for it. To have weekly and monthly goals is the best, you can easily keep track of your progress. We hope you achieve your goals you set for yourself this year.
Kristi @ Inspiration Kitchen says
This looks really good! Makes me want to grab that spoon and dig right in!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Kristi. We are glad you liked this recipe!
Kelly says
I love cauliflower and am always looking for new ideas and this looks great! I have never tried sumac before so thanks for sharing this recipe 🙂
Vicky & Ruth says
You are welcome. We hope you give Sumac a try!
Mary Frances says
I'm so impressed that something like that came from so few ingredients, and ones that are good for you, too! Yum!
Vicky & Ruth says
I know, that's the part of this recipe. Have a great week!
Shashi @ http://runninsrilankan.com says
I've seen a lot of cauliflower recipes - but this is my first cauliflower soup one! Looks wonderful!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Shashi, so glad you enjoyed it!
Amy Alt says
You know i only just discovered sumac the other day- I was poking around in our spice cupboards and I decided to have a little taste and I loved it but I had no idea what to use it in- really love the idea of this sumac oil though, im going to make some tonight to dress my salad with tomorrow- Thanks! 🙂
Vicky & Ruth says
Such a great idea to use the Sumac oil on a salad. Enjoy!
Monica says
It's a little crazy because I have cauliflower on my mind this week and plan to roast one tonight. I was just out to lunch with a friend and she talked about how she used it in lieu of pasta with tomato sauce! This looks so good! I really want to try making cauliflower soup.
Vicky & Ruth says
Perfect timing with our recipe. Never though of using cauliflower instead of pasta, sounds good. Hope you enjoy it when you make it.
Davida @ The Healthy Maven says
A love recipes everyone can enjoy! I don't think I've ever played around with sumac so this will be a great start. And I have a bit of saffron leftover from my jerusalem artichoke soup!
Vicky & Ruth says
You should try it, it has a nice tangy flavor. Nice Tush toning workout you posted!
[email protected] says
I love cauliflower and this soup is one I want to try 🙂 I did think about trying the paleo diet especially since everyone gives it rave reviews but I just can't give up my oatmeal :)! I love oats to much 🙂
Vicky & Ruth says
We don't follow a pale diet, but we thought some vegetarian paleo recipes were needed for the people who are interested. We agree about oats, they are so good.
Aimee / Wallflower Girl says
Mmm! Saffron? Wonderful. I would love a taste of this!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you, let us know if you give this soup a try.
Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes says
Love the minimal ingredients required for this....and the saffron!!! WOW!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you. It is amazing how flavorful it is with very few ingredients.
Jessica @ Jessiker Bakes says
Cauliflower soup? YES! I also love seeing soups with flavoured oil swirled into it, just looking at it makes me hungry! I'm sure the saffron also added tremendous flavour!
Vicky & Ruth says
Yes, the saffron adds a lot of flavor in a very delicate way.
Consuelo @ Honey & Figs says
One can never have too many recipes using cauliflower. I love that veggie hehehe ;--) And saffrom, oh I love that too!
Haleh says
Tried it. Loved it- Specially the Sumac Oil.
Vicky & Ruth says
So glad you love it, thank you so much for sharing!
Hindy says
This soup looks amazing. I don't use sumac enough. I love the idea if the sumac oil.
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Hindy, we hope you give this soup a try!
Shelley @ Two Healthy Kitchens says
Oh, ladies! This soup is stunningly gorgeous! The sumac oil drizzle is beautiful - what a unique finish to a lusciously creamy yet healthy soup!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thanks, the Sumac adds a nice tangy flavor to the soup. Enjoy!
stephanie says
yummy, the sumac oil looks so beautiful drizzled over the soup
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Stephanie, the sumac gave this soup a nice tangy flavor.
Yosef - This American Bite says
Would the sumac oil keep if I made a larger batch of it?
Vicky & Ruth says
Not sure about the sumac oil. I assume if you just mix the sumac, the oil and the salt it should keep for a while. I would mix in lemon before serving the oil.
The Hungry Mum says
oh YUM! I'm such a fan of soup that I eat it even in the middle of summer. This looks great, especially the sumac oil. Will give this a try very soon.
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you very much. We love soup as well!
Melissa {lilmisscakes} says
This soup looks so simple yet flavorful and delicious!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you Melissa. So glad you liked this recipe.
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says
How delicious! And I love the sprinkling of sumac oil, an often underrated spice 🙂
Vicky & Ruth says
Yes, most definitely an underrated spice. One of our favorites though 🙂
Ronnie Fein says
I am just beginning to realize the wonders of sumac. Had some recently on grilled fish. It has to be fabulous on cauliflower. Will try it soon.
Vicky & Ruth says
We absolutely love sumac. Our mom used to sprinkle it over sunny side up eggs when we were kids. Delicious!
Whitney @ Jewhungry says
I'm ashamed to say that I've had sumac. eeps! I'd love to try it in this soup though. Looks beautiful.
Couldn't Be Parve says
I love the idea of the sumac oil, and cauliflower soup is one of my favorites.
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you! The tangy sumac really complements the creaminess of the soup
jessica // the kosher foodies says
i literally just bought sumac yesterday and had no idea what to use it for. now i know i'll be making sumac oil!
Vicky & Ruth says
Haha, perfect timing! It's really delicious. Hope you like it 🙂
Sarah Klinkowitz says
I love soup - so restorative!
Vicky & Ruth says
Yes, especially with this "beautiful" weather we're getting!! :/
Eileen @ Phoenix Helix says
This recipe looks delicious AND it fits the paleo autoimmune protocol (a rare thing). So, thank you! I recently started a weekly Paleo AIP Recipe Roundtable through my blog, and I would love it if you linked up this recipe. I’m trying to expand resources for the AIP community.
Dana says
Wow, just stumbled upon your blog via findingvegan and am loving your recipes! This one looks great as does your Raspberry Chocolate Tart!!
Vicky & Ruth says
Thank you and welcome to our blog!! So glad you found us 🙂
Dina says
... Ladies, i made this magical soup this eve & it blew us away, the soup triumphed over all, so my daughter and i decided to ignore the dinner and we each had two bowls of that awesome soup, nothing was left, all finished, i should have made double the amount. Next time i will :), my daughter asked me how i thought of this recipe & i told her all about you, she was fascinated.Vicky & Ruth, thank you, you filled our tummies with love & warmth, Blessings to you both, love & peace, God Bless ...
★★★★★
Vicky & Ruth says
We are so happy that you decided to share your experience with us. Thank you very much for your wonderful feedback
Vicky & Ruth says
Hi Dina, thank you so much for your wonderful feedback and for sharing your experience with us. We are really happy you enjoyed the cauliflower soup.
Dina says
... Greetings ladies Vicky & Ruth :), thank you very much for your reply, i must tell you that i've become the saffron infused cauliflower soup addict, it's cauliflower season right now, & there's no stopping me, every time i eat that creamy dream, i smile & bless you, thank you both, love & peace to you & God Bless ...
★★★★★
Dina says
... Ladies, many warm greetings to you both, cauliflower season is here again 🙂 & cauliflower soup with summa' oil mania has started, i'm going now to have my soup. Want to tell you that you both are about to be Blessed big time, with every spoon savored, love & peace, God Bless ...
★★★★★
Esther says
Love sumac! But saffron is so expensive. Would turmeric work or does the flavor depend too much on the saffron? Love the blog!
Esther
Vicky and Ruth says
Thank you for your kind words. Saffron and turmeric have very different flavors, but you can certainly use turmeric. It will give the soup a lovely color.