Vegan Cauliflower Soup

July settles in. The heat is Vermont heat, which means it tops out at ninety for a week and then breaks, unlike the sustained misery of places farther south that I have been to and left without regret. We are not a humid state. We are a hot-in-July-then-fine state. I can work with this.

The tomatoes are setting fruit. Still green, most of them, and probably three weeks from the first real harvest, but the presence of small green tomatoes on the vine is a form of good news that the Vermont summer delivers every July. They will be red in August. They will be in the sauce by October. Between now and October, Helen will slice them onto bread with good salt, and that specific thing will happen for about four weeks and then stop for nine months. I try not to take those four weeks for granted. I have gotten better at this as I have gotten older.

I have been making cold cucumber soup this week, which is a summer thing I do when the cucumbers come in and it is too hot to want anything warm at lunch. Cucumbers peeled and seeded, blended with plain yogurt and a clove of garlic and a handful of dill from Helen's herb garden, seasoned and chilled for two hours. Served cold in a bowl. This sounds too simple to be interesting and is instead one of the more refreshing things I know how to make in July. Simple is frequently the right answer. It took me thirty years of cooking to accept this without feeling like I was cutting a corner.

Frost is managing the heat by sleeping under the porch, where the ground stays cool. He comes out at dawn and at dusk and spends the hot middle of the day in his shaded spot. He is sixty-three in dog years, approximately, which means he and I have the same approach to July: early mornings, cool shade at noon, active again in the evening. We are perfectly calibrated to each other. Nine years of this. I have no complaints about any of it.

The cucumber soup I described above is the one I make most often in July, but there are weeks when the cucumbers haven’t quite caught up with the heat, and those are the weeks I turn to this vegan cauliflower soup — made, like the cucumber version, with the goal of putting something cold and honest in a bowl without standing over a stove any longer than necessary. It has the same quality I was trying to describe: simple enough to feel like you’re cutting a corner, good enough to confirm that you aren’t. Frost doesn’t get any, but he approves of the general philosophy.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 40 min (plus 2 hours chilling) | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 medium head cauliflower, cut into florets (about 5 cups)
1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups vegetable broth, low-sodium
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (or oat milk)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Salt to taste
Fresh chives or dill, for serving
Drizzle of good olive oil, for serving

Instructions

Sauté the aromatics. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
Add cauliflower and broth. Add the cauliflower florets and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 18 to 20 minutes until cauliflower is very tender when pierced with a fork.
Blend until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Using an immersion blender (or a standard blender in batches), puree the soup until completely smooth and creamy.
Stir in milk and season. Return the pot to low heat. Stir in the coconut milk, lemon juice, cumin, and white pepper. Taste and adjust salt. Heat through gently — do not boil.
Chill thoroughly. Transfer soup to a container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until fully cold. The soup will thicken slightly as it chills; thin with a splash of broth if preferred.
Serve cold. Ladle into bowls and finish with a drizzle of olive oil and a scatter of fresh chives or dill.

Nutrition (per serving)

Vegan Cauliflower Soup — When the Cucumbers Run Out and the Heat Doesn’t