Is there anything that cauliflower doesn’t lend itself to? So many wonderful ways of using this vegetable! Here is one of my favourites, combining the kick of harissa and warm fragrant spices along with the nuttiness of almonds. The recipe came originally from the BBC Good Food site, which has lots of super ideas, but theirs was much higher in calories. I have used less oil and made the soup less dense, so that it is ideal for a fast day. Beware of the harissa! It can be fiercely hot if you aren’t used to it, so you might want to start with a smaller quantity and taste before adding it all. For a milder kick, you could use a chilli sauce, such as Cholula.
This recipe can be found in my book 5:2 Healthy Eating for Life, available in kindle and print editions from Amazon, worldwide.
- 1 large cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp harissa paste
- 2 litres chicken or vegetable stock, made with stock cube or bouillon powder
- 30g toasted flaked almonds
- 1 tsp harissa paste
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Heat the oil in a large pan and gently fry the spices together with the harissa paste, for a couple of minutes.
- Add the cauliflower and stock and most of the almonds, reserving some for decoration.
- Bring to the boil, cover and lower heat to simmer for 20 minutes, until the cauliflower is tender. Whizz with a hand blender until smooth.
- To serve, mix harissa paste with lemon juice to make a swirl for decorating and sprinkle flaked almonds over the top.
- Per serving: kcals 87
- Carbs 10g Fat 5g Protein 4g