Spinach-Cauliflower Soup

 

 

      3 Tablespoons     unsalted butter

      2                 shallots, chopped

      2 10-ounce bags   fresh spinach, rinsed and stemmed

                        salt and pepper to taste

      1 large           head cauliflower,

          or 2 small      trimmed and cut into florets

      4 cups            chicken stock

    1/2 teaspoon        ground nutmeg

      1 cup             plain yogurt (for serving)

 

1.  In a heavy-bottomed soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. 

Cook the shallots, stiffing occasionally, for 5 minutes or until

they soften.

 

2.  Add the spinach with plenty of salt and pepper.  Turn up the heat.

Cook the spinach, turning it often, until it wilts.

 

3.  Add the cauliflower and stock.  Bring to a boil, lower the heat,

cover the pot, and simmer the soup for 20 minutes or until the

cauliflower is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.

 

4.  Puree the soup in a blender a little at a time until it is smooth.

Transfer the pureed soup to a clean pot.  Add nutmeg, taste for

seasoning, and add more salt and pepper if you like.  If the soup

seems too thick, add water, a few spoons at a time, to thin.

 

5.  Garnish with a spoonful of plain yogurt and serve at once.

 

Serves 6.

 

                                  -- Leigh Balanger

                                     Boston Globe Food Section