Chef Britt shows you how to make Curry Cauliflower Soup the ATBBQ way! Elevated with char, smoke, and amazing curry flavors! It's all blended together with the power of the Vitamix A2500 Ascent Series Blender.



Cauliflower has proved to be one of the most versatile vegetables in the past several years. With its somewhat neutral flavor and nutrient-dense makeup, people looking for healthier eating habits usually start here. As part of the cruciferous family, you would expect it to have a more pronounced cabbage-like flavor, but it's much more mild, making it the perfect backdrop for a spiced-up and healthy curry soup.



There are a few things I absolutely love about this recipe: one being the use of the Vitamix A2500 Ascent Series Blender. The other being the introduction of a newer product we're carrying here at All Things BBQ - Entube Indian Curry Chile Paste from Jacobsen Salt. 



To start this recipe while wielding my favorite knife for vegetable prep, the Wusthof 7" Nakiri, I trim the extra leafy bits at the base of the head of cauliflower, just to clean it up. Make sure to wash your produce! Dirt will often be lurking in the crevasses!



I then slather both corn and cauliflower with a good amount of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I particularly love this Saica brand, made from Casteltravano olives.



Next, I begin by adding a couple of tablespoons of Entube Curry Paste onto the cauliflower and just use either my hands or a brush to rub it over the entire surface.



This curry paste is an incredibly fragrant combination of cumin, turmeric, fennel, onion, garlic, coriander, fenugreek, acerola berry, cayenne, ginger, and other spices. It provides a rich backbone of flavor to elevate the plain-tasting vegetables.



Also notable to mention, there is an ample amount of salt in the curry paste, which is great for activating the seasoning on the cauliflower itself.



To prep this vegetable for the smoker, I cut the seasoned head of cauliflower in half and oil the cut side. Each half will now lay flat and absorb more smoke flavor with the oil on the surface.



Both the corn and cauliflower roast in the Yoder Smokers YS640s for 35 minutes at 400°F. The corn remains in the husk to prevent it from drying out, and 35 minutes is an ample amount of time to heat the vegetables through and get some good smoke flavor. The cauliflower's texture remains slightly crunchy, which will be perfect to create texture with a garnish later.



I prep the corn by cutting the kernels off the cob and reserving about a quarter cup of kernels to serve as a garnish later. I also will take one half of the cauliflower and separate florets for a garnish as well. The stem bits will make its way into the blender.



The rest of the recipe is as simple as throwing it all in blender. I measure out 2 cups of chicken stock and 1 cup of half & half to add some extra body to the soup.



I also add another tablespoon or two to the mixture, just to really ramp up the curry flavor.



The Vitamix A2500 Ascent Series Blender is incredibly powerful with a 2.2 horsepower motor. A really neat function that any high-powered Vitamix will have is the ability to heat as it blends. It accomplishes this by extending the length of blending time and using friction to achieve heat. Even more convenient, the A2500 has a pre-programmed setting just for soup! I've also found this works for more than just soup! Check out my recipe for Smoky Chocolate Pudding using the same setting: Smoky Chocolate Cream Puffs.



And while this isn't the only feature of the A2500 Blender, there are also programs for frozen desserts and smoothies. With Vitamix's smart bluetooth technology, your recipes automatically adjust to whatever size smart pitcher you select for the job. In other words, you don't have to do any physics homework to use this function seamlessly with different-sized batches. It does it for you.



After the 5:45 minutes has elapsed, I check the temperature to ensure the soup is hot. My thermometer clocks the soup right around 160°F, which is perfect for a soup that ready to immediately serve.



However, like a true culinarian, I taste and decide a good helping of Jacobsen Kosher Salt is needed to elevate all the flavors in the soup.



One more twirl around the blender to combine, and I'm ready to plate after the final tasting.



I start by adding some of the separated florets into the bottom of my serving bowl.



Pour the soup in, add some garnish of corn, fresh cracked pepper, and a little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.



Boom. Healthy. Flavorful. Warming. Simple. Does it really get any better than that? Okay, I know some of you would like a big hunk of meat to set it off, but consider this a great starter.

Recipe: Vitamix Curry Cauliflower Soup

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Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower


• 2 cobs of corn


• 1/2 tube of Entube Indian Curry Chile Paste from Jacobsen Salt


• 2-3 Tablespoons Saica Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil


• 2 cups chicken broth or stock


• 1 cup half & half


• Jacobsen Salt Co. Pure Kosher Sea Salt, to taste


• Fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

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Instructions

• Preheat your grill or smoker to 400°F.


• Clean the cauliflower and trim any excess greenery from the head of cauliflower.


• Season the cauliflower and the cobs of corn with Saica Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil.


• Spread 2-3 tablespoons of Entube Indian Curry Chile Paste from Jacobsen Salt over the entire surface of the cauliflower head.


• Cut the cauliflower in half, oil the cut side, and place corn and cauliflower on the top rack of your grill or smoker for indirect cooking.


• After 35 minutes, remove the corn and cauliflower.


• Remove kernels from the cobs and reserve 1/4 cup of kernels for garnish.


• Remove florets from one half of the cauliflower and trim them into bite-size pieces. Place the remaining cauliflower half and stem trimmings into blender with corn, half and half, chicken stock, and 2-3 tablespoons Entube Indian Curry Chile Paste from Jacobsen Salt.


• Blend soup with a high-powered blender for 6 minutes on the highest setting, or on the Vitamix hot soup program.


• Taste and finish with Jacobsen Salt Co. Pure Kosher Sea Salt, and more curry paste if preferred.


• To serve, place cauliflower florets into bowl and pour soup over the florets. Garnish with reserved corn kernels, fresh cracked black pepper, and a drizzle of Saica Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil.