Lunch
Roasted cauliflower and white-bean soup with gluten-free toast
Roasted cauliflower, white beans and thyme blended into a thick winter soup, with crisp gluten-free toast for dipping.
Free guide: thirty gluten-free dinners, with the shopping lists
Roasting gives the cauliflower golden edges, while white beans make the soup thick without cream. Lemon lifts the flavour at the end. Each lunch serving comes with two slices of gluten-free toast.
The ingredient list covers the whole meal for four. Olive oil is listed once: 30 ml for roasting, 15 ml for the onion and 15 ml for the toast. Before shopping, subtract only the quantities you already have; no pantry supplies are assumed. This recipe uses fresh vegetables and newly opened tins of cooked beans.
The recipe
Roasted cauliflower and white-bean soup with gluten-free toast
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 50 min
- Total*
- 70 min
- Makes
- 4 servings
*Estimated development timings. No standing time is required. The cooking estimate includes making the soup base while the cauliflower roasts and toasting the bread while the soup simmers.
Ingredients
Tick things off as you go.
For the soup and cooking
For the toast
Equipment
- Use two large, shallow roasting trays that fit on separate oven shelves.
- Use a saucepan with a capacity of at least 4 litres and a lid.
- Use a stick blender suitable for hot soup.
- Have a chopping board, sharp knife, colander, measuring jug, scales, measuring spoons and stirring spoon ready.
- Use clean tongs and four large soup bowls.
Let’s make it.
- 01
Prepare the kitchen and vegetables
Check the stock and bread are labelled gluten-free and suitable for a vegan diet, and check the beans, thyme and seasonings for gluten-free suitability. Wash hands and clean the worktop, trays, utensils and blender, removing any bread crumbs. Heat the oven to 220°C / 200°C fan. Cut the cauliflower into florets about 3 cm across and slice the tender stalk thinly. Measure the remaining ingredients. Check that both trays fit on separate shelves with room for air to circulate.
- 02
Roast the cauliflower
Divide the cauliflower between the trays and toss with 30 ml of the olive oil and the black pepper. Spread it in a single layer. Roast for 30–35 minutes, turning the pieces and swapping the trays between shelves halfway through. It is ready when the edges are golden brown and a knife slides easily through the thickest stalk pieces.
- 03
Soften the onion
While the cauliflower roasts, heat 15 ml of the olive oil in the saucepan over a medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook for 10–12 minutes, stirring regularly, until soft and translucent. Stir in the garlic and thyme and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant without letting the garlic brown.
- 04
Rinse and warm the beans
Tip the beans into a colander, rinse them thoroughly under cold running water and drain well. Add the rinsed beans and prepared stock to the onion. Bring to a gentle simmer, then cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beans are hot and squash readily against the side of the pan. If the cauliflower is still roasting, cover the pan and turn the heat down low until it is ready.
- 05
Combine the soup and toast the bread
Transfer all the roasted cauliflower to the saucepan and simmer for 5–8 minutes, until every piece crushes easily with the spoon. Meanwhile, spread the bread across the two emptied trays and brush with the remaining 15 ml olive oil. Toast in the same oven for 6–10 minutes, turning halfway through and checking early because gluten-free bread varies. Remove when the surfaces are lightly golden and the edges feel crisp.
- 06
Blend and season
Take the pan off the heat and allow bubbling to stop. Following the blender manufacturer's instructions, keep the blade head submerged and blend until there are no obvious pieces of cauliflower or bean. Stir in the lemon juice. If the soup is too thick to pour from a ladle, add the optional water a little at a time, up to 200 ml. Taste a cooled spoonful and add salt only if needed. Return to a low heat and stir for 2–3 minutes, or until steaming hot throughout.
- 07
Serve the whole lunch
Divide the hot soup evenly between four bowls and scatter the parsley over the top. Give each person two slices of toast, equivalent to 80 g bread before toasting. Serve immediately, while the soup is steaming and the toast is crisp.
Ingredient checks
Use bread and vegan vegetable stock labelled gluten-free; ordinary bread and stock containing gluten are unsuitable. Check the current labels of tinned beans, dried thyme, pepper and any stock concentrate, including precautionary allergen warnings. If using concentrate, the listed litre is the total prepared stock, not an additional litre of water. Use fresh lemon juice as listed. Keep gluten-free bread away from ordinary bread, shared crumbs and flour; use clean trays for oven toasting rather than a shared crumb-contaminated toaster. Product brands were not supplied, so individual packs have not been verified.
Allergens: The final allergen profile depends on the bread and stock: vegetable stock may contain celery, mustard or soya, and gluten-free bread may contain soya, sesame or lupin.; Choose vegan bread without egg or milk ingredients; a vegan label does not rule out allergen cross-contact.; Gluten-free bread can contain specially processed wheat starch, so gluten-free does not necessarily mean suitable for someone with a wheat allergy.; Check all labels and precautionary warnings against celery, cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, milk, molluscs, mustard, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, soya and sulphites; no other member of this list is deliberately added by the basic recipe..
Make it work for you
Replace the cannellini beans with the same drained weight of tinned butter beans or haricot beans in water, checked for gluten-free suitability.
Replace the parsley with 10 g chopped fresh chives.
Replace the dried thyme with 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves, adding them with the garlic.
Choose another gluten-free vegan loaf if needed, keeping the total bread quantity at 320 g and checking its allergens and toasting instructions.
For another day
For make-ahead lunches, store the soup separately and toast the bread just before serving.
Divide leftover soup into shallow containers, cool promptly and refrigerate within 1–2 hours at 0–5°C. Eat within 48 hours or freeze promptly after cooling.
Freeze the soup in labelled individual portions. Its texture after freezing has not been kitchen-tested.
Defrost frozen soup fully in the fridge and use within 24 hours of defrosting. Reheat only once, stirring frequently until steaming hot throughout.
The stated cooking schedule starts with fresh vegetables and newly opened tins, not previously cooked leftovers. Follow the separate cooling and reheating guidance for soup made ahead.
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