This recipe – Spicy Cauliflower Zucchini Coconut Soup – is my new favorite because it’s nutrient-dense, creamy (because of the cauliflower), lasts well in the fridge for a few days, freezes well, and is oh so yummy!
I tend to create my own recipes after being inspired by a recipe in a book, blog or eating something similar. I knew I wanted something creamy and went searching and found this recipe – Zucchini Soup with Fresh Mint – in The Complete Gut Health Cookbook by Pete Evans and Helen Padarin (on page 147 in case you have this book or end up buying a copy. It’s a great book by the way!).
The beautiful green color caught my eye. Cauliflower is one of my favorite vegetables and I had never made a soup with cauliflower before! Pete and Helen’s recipe calls for 2 handfuls of spinach leaves which are problematic for with my oxalate issues so I improvised with bok choy. The end result is not quite a green but it’s still pretty and is really delicious.
I also LOVE all things coconut and can’t resist adding coconut milk to soups for the added creaminess and to provide a good healthy fat. And with that coconut I just had to add some Indian spices for all the goodness and flavor they offer. I’m a mild spicy kind of girl so it’s not too hot. If oxalates are an issue for you reduce the quantities of the higher oxalate spices or leave them out (more on this below the recipe). Here’s the end result:
Spicy Cauliflower Zucchini Coconut Soup (serves 12)
6 large zucchini (or courgette if you’re in the UK or South Africa)
1 large cauliflower
2 large bunches of bok choy
Approx 16 cups /3.5 liters/4 quarts of liquid (home-made chicken broth and enough filtered water to cover the vegetables, leaving room in the pot for the coconut milk)
1 can coconut milk
Spices
1 tablespoon turmeric (extra high oxalates)
1 tablespoon cumin (very high oxalates)
1 teaspoon curry powder (very high oxalates)
1 tablespoon coriander (high oxalates)
1 tablespoon ginger (low oxalates)
½ tablespoon sea salt
¼ tablespoon black pepper
(this is a mild combination of spices; you could add more curry powder to make it more spicy)
Chop the zucchini and cauliflower and add to the water in a large pot. Chop the white stalks of the bok choy and add to the water with zucchini and cauliflower. Reserve the green leaves of the bok choy and slice finely for later.
Bring to a boil, cover and simmer slowly for about 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
Open the can of coconut milk, reserving a few tablespoons for drizzling over the served soup. Pour the remainder into the soup pot, together with the spices and cook for a further minute, stirring to blend everything. Add the finely sliced green leaves of the bok choy and cook for a few more minutes.
Blend until smooth and add back to the pot to reheat. Serve with a drizzle of coconut milk.
Some other serving options:
- add half a chopped avocado to the serving bowl (I like the chunks) and some MCT oil (for more of a keto-friendly soup and to help with blood sugar stability)
- add chunks of cooked organic chicken or slices of cooked grass-fed beef
- or simply serve before the main meal
Enjoy!
The blended soup can be stored in the fridge for a few days and re-heated for lunches and dinner (in a pot and not the microwave), or even enjoyed cold. Be sure to store in glass or pyrex containers.
It also freezes well (and again, use glass or pyrex). When you’re ready to use it, either thaw ahead of time or place the frozen glass/pyrex container in warm water for a few minutes in the sink. This thaws the edges just enough so it’s easy to tip the frozen soup into a pot to finish thawing and reheat. Use low heat while it’s thawing in the pot.
If you have food challenges with oxalates, autoimmune triggers or SIBO:
1) It’s low oxalate with the bok choy instead of spinach but you could use could use 2 cups of baby spinach if oxalates are not an issue.
Per the spreadsheet in the TryingLowOxalates facebook group run by Susan Owens, a biomedical researcher and the founder of the Autism Oxalate Project, the spices above add up to about 20-24g of oxalates.
- turmeric (extra high oxalates)
- cumin (very high oxalates)
- curry powder (very high oxalates)
- coriander (high oxalates)
- ginger (low oxalates)
As I mention above, if you have a problem with oxalates you may need to reduce the quantities of the higher oxalate spices or use more magnesium citrate or calcium citrate with this meal.
On a personal note, I’m very sensitive to oxalates (too much and I get really painful hot-coals-burning/shards-of- glass type pain in my feet and very scratchy eyes) and I seem to tolerate the above amounts of spices in a large soup like this, provided I’m not eating other high oxalate foods at the same time.
2) It’s AIP-friendly (Autoimmune Paleo)
3) It’s FODMAPS-friendly as is or feel free to add garlic and onion if tolerated
Let me know if this sounds yummy and ask away if you have any questions. If you make it be sure to come back and let us know how you enjoyed it. And let us know if you made your own variation.