Zero Waste Creamy Cauliflower Carrot Ginger Soup

The only thing I am finding comfort in these days is with a biiiiiig bowl of my piping hot zero waste creamy carrot cauliflower ginger soup 🥣 🧡🥕🧡🥣

There’s something about #soupseason that gives me of the #cozyvibes. 🥰This feel-good soup that I made for Illuminate Food will make you feel good about making the most out of your ingredients because it’s completely #zerowaste! 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼By blending the cauliflower stalk into the soup and sautéing the stems for the garnish, I was able to incorporate every single cell of the cauliflower to make my body happy and well ☺️☺️☺️

In Ayurveda, we believe that food has energy and should be treated with respect because we ultimately absorb the energy of everything that we consume. ✨💫 Looking at food through this lens has given me a completely new perspective to how I approach a recipe. In order to ensure that I am doing my part to honor and respect all of the love, effort and attention that farmers and Mother Nature put into growing the food that I eat, I try to use every single piece of an ingredient so that their creations are not put to waste. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, over $162 billion worth of food is wasted annually!!! This is the equivalent of 58,064,516,219 meals!By making small changes and setting the intention of reducing our contributions to the waste stream, we can make a difference! ♻️🌎🌍🌏♻️ 

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Ingredients: Serves 4

• 1 tablespoon coconut oil

• 1 medium cauliflower

• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, ground

• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, ground

• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, ground

• 2 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric

• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

• 1-2 bay leaves

• 1 large carrot, chopped

• 3 stalks of celery, chopped

• 2 inches of fresh ginger, peeled, grated and chopped

• 1 cup vegetable stock

• 1/4 cup red lentils

• 1 lime, juiced and zested

• 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)

• Italian parsley (optional)

• Olive oil (optional)

Instructions:

1. Remove the leaves and stalk of the cauliflower. Roughly chop the big ones and keep the small ones whole.

2. Heat a stockpot on medium-high heat and add the coconut oil. Fry the cauliflower stalks with 1 teaspoon of salt until they are golden then season and set aside.

3. In the same pan, add the cumin, coriander, fennel seeds, salt, turmeric, ground pepper and bay leaves and allow the spices to bloom until they become aromatic. Once the spices are bloomed, add the ginger, celery and carrots with the rest of the oil and stir to cover with the spiced oil.

4. Add the cauliflower florets, the chopped stalk, the red lentils and the stock. Bring the mixture to the boil and then immediately lower to a medium simmer and let cook for about 8 minutes until the cauliflower is tender.

5. Remove the bay leaves. Blend up the soup in batches with lime juice, then serve up each bowl and top with the cauliflower leaves, lime zest then drizzle over with olive oil