30min Creamy Dairy-Free Cauli Soup

On a recent trip up north to visit a very good friend, I happened to catch the first snow of the season—a light dusting of white before all the leaves had fallen. The weather stirred up a craving for soup, which is never a bad call on a cold day. The idea was to make something rich and satisfying but wasn’t weighed down by dairy (for dietary constraints and general health). A plus would be having some brightness in color and flavor, given how bland winter vegetables can be. The soup met all the criteria thanks to the jar of Trader Joe’s ‘red pepper spread with eggplant and garlic’ (that’s a mouthful) that I’d found in the pantry.

(whoops only got a picture of the empty jar)

The spread was a vibrant red paste that tasted of a summer harvest with a creamy texture. To amp up the creaminess, I added some tahini I had on hand. These I combined with potatoes, cauliflower and onion, and two cans of beans (a la pantry) resulting in a colorful and flavorful soup that was also a complete meal. The soup base is creamy but well-balanced by the crunch retained by the cauliflower.

The recipe below has the specifics, but feel free to improvise according to availability and personal preference. I think the value of the recipe lies in the strategy of combining fresh produce with pantry finds, saving time for things like pumpkin carving~

The classic 

The cheesy

||30min Creamy Dairy-Free Cauli Soup||

Makes 10-12 hearty servings
Ingredients

• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 lb. golden potatoes, halved then sliced ½” lengthwise
• One 12oz. jar red bell pepper spread (I used Trader Joe’s but other equivalent works!)
• 1 head of cauliflower, broken into florets; the stem chopped into 1" pieces
• 1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• ¼ cup tahini

Directions

1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat for a minute before adding oil followed by onion. Cook until onions are translucent and starting to caramelize
2. Add potatoes, red pepper spread and enough hot water to the level of the potatoes, cover the pot and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are softened.
3. Add cauliflower, beans and tahini and continue simmering for about another 10-15 minutes until cauliflower is cooked (but not to the point of mushy).
4. Serve and enjoy!