Creamy Cauliflower Chowder (30 minute and Gluten Free)
on Nov 27, 2016, Updated Aug 27, 2020
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This Creamy Cauliflower Chowder is gluten free and is perfect without any flour or processed ingredients with one simple trick. Top with with some olive oil and bacon- and you have a bowl of heaven!
It’s simple – this creamy cauliflower chowder is everything in my life right now. Because I’m trying so hard to get rid of the holiday bloat that still seems to stick around. And this warm, comforting, creamy cauliflower chowder is my new happy place. When I can just get a bowl and watch Gilmore Girls all day.
Yes you heard that right. I turned into the girl who watches Gilmore Girls all day. And I think I’ve converted Denver too. But in my defense, I started because Netflix just kept throwing it up as a recommended watch. Which is cool, because I discovered it and now I love it. Especially when I’m working so it runs in the background and I go on with my day. Is that weird? Do you have a weird thing like that when you work? Watch Listen to Netflix in the background, sip on piping hot cauliflower chowder and basically make that your happy place.
So coming back to the deets here. And trying to keep away from the whole Netflix talk. This creamy cauliflower chowder is the best thing this winter is going to see. Its seriously addictive especially when you top it up with some extra virgin olive oil and lots of bacon. Yes, that olive oil is going to do all sorts of things to this cauliflower chowder. And bacon. What can I say about bacon that’s going to convince you. BACON is just awesome and it makes everything better. Even this cauliflower chowder, which is already awesome.
Now I’ve made cauliflower soup once before, and it was this super creamy, super smooth cauliflower soup. Which was amazing but this ones sort of chunky and creamy at the same time. Which just makes for perfection. You just blend a part of the chowder while it’s still cooking so that all that cauliflower makes a creamy base, but there’s still some small chunky bits for your to bite into and give it it’s chowder-ness.
So let’s put on the soup pot and give this creamy cauliflower chowder a go! And watch some Netflix on the side. I won’t tell if you won’t.
More Netflix and Chill Recipes:
- Creamy Vegetable Soup
- Creamy Lemon Mushroom Kale Linguine
- Creamy Chicken Meatballs in Mushroom Sauce
- 30 Minute Vegetarian Lasagna Skillet
Watch how to make Cauliflower Chowder Video Recipe
Creamy Cauliflower Chowder (30 minute and Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Butter
- 1/2 cup Onion, diced
- 5 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 1/2 cup Carrots, diced
- 1 Whole Head of Cauliflower, cut into small florets
- 1 1/2 cups Vegetable Broth
- 1 teaspoon Pepper, freshly ground
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1/4 cup Cream cheese
- Salt , to taste
- Olive Oil , and cooked bacon for topping
Instructions
- In a dutch oven or soup pot, heat butter and add onions and garlic. Saute for a few minutes till the onions are soft.
- Add carrots, cauliflower, vegetable broth, pepper, oregano and salt to the pot. Bring this to a boil, and slow the heat down to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes or so till the cauliflower is tender.
- Switch off the flame and using a blender, blend the soup partly in the soup pot. If you don't have a hand blender, pour half the soup into a blender and pulse a few tips till creamy.
- Switch the flame back on and add a cup of water or broth along with the cream cheese. Simmer for 5-10 minutes and switch off the flame. Feel free to thin the soup further if you like with some more broth or milk. Top with olive oil and bacon and serve hot.
Notes
- Skip the bacon to make this dish vegetarian.
- Cauliflower prep is very important as it is very common to find tiny worms hidden inside the florets. To ensure your cauliflower is fully clean, submerge the florets in hot water with some salt for 20 minutes before using. Always buy cauliflower from a trusted vegetable vendor.
- It's important to cook the cauliflowers just right. They should be cooked until al dente, i.e., tender and soft but still have a slight bite.
- You can use vegan cream cheese instead to make this dish vegan friendly.
I made this recipe tonight with broccoli. It was awesome. Couple modifications; I used broccoli, cream and added shredded shredded cheddar cheese. Best ever. We fought over left overs. Will make again.
This would be sooooo good with broccoli! Glad you liked it Tonja!
I just found this recipe and it’s awesome!!! I just made my second batch and tweeked it a little. I added some diced celery and a 1/2 cup diced ham ( skip the bacon and oil on top) and it’s even better. I’m thinking you can add just about anything to this.
Absolutely! Thats the beauty of this recipe – you can really make it your own. Glad you liked it so much Linda!
My wife made this last night, and it was excellent. It snowed here in Texas last night, so it was the perfect day for this soup. Don’t be afraid to spice it up. Tasted like bisque or loaded baked potato soup, perfect for my Keto diet!!
Glad you loved it so much Jason. Thanks for writing in!
Is the carb count for this soup the total or net? It seems kind of high in carbs to be keto friendly is the only reason I ask 🙂
Hey Kristee, the nutrition information provided is per serving.
Made this last night and it was sooo delish!! I only used vegetable broth instead of plain water where the recipe said you could use either and it came out a bit salty so I added a cup to cup and a half of heavy cream. Which made more soup anyway and we ate every last drop! I’ll have to double the recipe next time to have some to store for cold days, which are few and far between down here in Louisiana!! I am vegetarian so this was perfect for me but my nonveggie boyfriend was a huge fan as well!! Thanks for the recipe!
Yay! Its our favourite soup too and I love that it converted a non-vegetarian 🙂
Hello, I tried this today and it is so good. I live in France 🇫🇷 and wasn’t able to find cream cheese 🧀 so I used mascarpone – crème sans lactose.
Thx for this easy recipe my husband loves it.
YUM! Mascarpone would be amazing too! Sooo glad you liked it!
I’m not sure what’s going on, but the printer-only version looks pretty funky, e.g. a scramble of numbers followed by 1/16 c. diced carrots, lol! I’m getting by on your main page, but thought I’d give you the heads-up. My kitchen smells good with all of that garlic – I can’t wait until this is finished!
So sorry about that. We are just having some trouble with our recipe plugin and fixing that very soon.
This was amazing! I made it for lunch today. It was so creamy and full of flavor. All my little ones loved it. Definitely a winner!! Will be making over and over again. Thank you.
Thanks Svetlana! So happy you liked it!
Any way to do this in a crock pot
Hey Melissa, you can add the ingredients to a slow cooker and cook for 2-3 hours, and then blend lightly with an immersion blender
Just came across this recipe. It sounds delicious. I have a question regarding the liquids. On the website 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth is listed but when I go to print it switches over to milk with no amount. Weird, huh? Which is correct and how much?