Recently, we were dining at our favourite French restaurant in our hood. We were sitting at the bar chatting with the staff and another patron when, for no apparent reason, a wine glass slid off the top shelf and plummeted to the ground, shattering!
Well, that was interesting! No one was near it, and the manager said that they put rubber mats on the shelves to prevent this type of thing. Yet, it slid off the shelf entirely on its own. Later, someone mentioned that the location had been a funeral home when it was first built in 1923 (we’ve been here 17 years and have only known the location to be restaurants!). You decide what happened, but my bet is on a sneaky ghost giving us a fright!
Smoked Garlic and Roasted Cauliflower Soup
A KitchenInspirations Original Recipe
Please click here to print the recipe.
Makes 1.5 L (6 cups) soup
Ingredients:
- 25 g smoked garlic (about 5 cloves)
- 560 g cauliflower (about 1/2 a large head), cut into smallish florets
- 1 L (4 cups) chicken stock (or vegetable)
- 90 g (1/2 cup) red lentils
- non-stick spray
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- sea salt
Directions:
- Pre-heat the oven to 400° F (200° C).
- Add the unpeeled garlic cloves to a small ramekin, sprinkle with a little sea salt. Pour about 1 cm (1/2 inch) stock over cloves and cover with either foil or ramekin lid.
- Spray a large baking sheet with non-stick spray and add the cauliflower, sprinkle with a little sea salt. Add the ramekin with garlic to a corner of the baking sheet. Bake cauliflower and garlic for 30-40 minutes or until quite soft, turning frequently to avoid burning. I like to add a little stock to the bottom of the roasting pan to make sure I get all the little bits from the pan.
- Pour the cauliflower into a large pot. Peel the garlic and add it to the cauliflower, add some of the stock and purée until smooth. Add the red lentils and cook until lentils are soft. Purée again until smooth, adding stock until you achieve the desired consistency. You may wish to run this through a fine sieve to make it even more luxurious.
- Serve hot.

The cloves are cold smoked and are still raw.

Perfect timing as it’s getting pretty darn cold!
Notes:
- A dear friend gave me a couple of heads of smoked garlic, she picked it up at a local farmers market. I had never seen or heard of it before but you can bet that I’ll be trying to make it soon!
- The smoked garlic is raw and therefore needs some cooking when used in this quantity, I prefer roasting, usually with olive oil instead of stock, but we are trying to lose a few summer pounds.
- The smoke in the garlic is very subtle, that is why I added the smoked paprika, but be careful, it can get overwhelming very quickly.
- I added the lentils to get some protein into this meatless meal, and it also is an amazing thickener that becomes so velvety smooth when puréed.
- Some topping suggestions:
-
- Crumbled crispy bacon
- Crispy onions
- Grilled cheese croutons
- Grated cheese (like gruyère or sharp cheddar)
- a dollop of Crème Fraiche or sour cream
Yum Eva, your soup sounds so interesting and good.
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Thank you kindly, Karen.
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You may not know, but garlic will not ward off ghosts. It really only works with the undead. You know, vampires and stuff. Oh, and the cursed. Likes werewolves. Although if the person on the treadmill next to me had garlic the night before, it will ward me to, like, at least four treadmills away. But man, a soup like this would be totally right up my alley.
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I did not know that, and all those years I spent with garlic draped around my neck! You sure about the vampires?
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Haunted restaurant! Wow! I would certainly go there at least to see the glasses move 😉
Your soup seems wonderful, especially with the smoked garlic added. I’ve never had smoked garlic, but I love everything smoked (here I miss Polish cold meats which are all smoked and so delicious… or the dozens of smoked fish to choose from even in basic supermarkets…). I love the way you have thickened it with lentils.
I must check if I can find smoked garlic somewhere!
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Hi Sissi, I’m going to try to smoke some garlic myself to see if it could be done easily, it was pretty expensive.
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Cool ghost story! And neat dish. I havnen’t worked with smoked garlic before — sounds so interesting. And I love cauliflower in soup! Great idea to use the red lentils to thicken things up — I always amazed how they lose their red coloration when cooked. Anyway, this sounds really good — thanks.
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Thanks so much John, it really hit the spot that day!
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How strange for that to happen! Perhaps it was a ghost out for Halloween 😉 This soup looks divine Eva. We’re having a bit of colder weather (well cold for us) and this would be perfect 🙂
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I was thinking of you as I sat there Lorraine, it was creepy for sure!
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Eeeeek! You know I love your ghost stories and the subject of the paranormal excites me, always has (exploring all the possibilities!).
Roasted veg adds so much to the flavor of soup and garlic is among my favorites, especially this time of year, I find its warming properties so welcome. What a clever idea to add the red lentil. Your service is lovely here Eva with the pretty matching cups.
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Thank you kindly Kelly, I’ve always been intrigued by the paranormal too, although I most definitely prefer to experience it with others around! I use lentils a lot to thicken.
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Very creamy and full of aroma! I had a very similar soup a while ago, but with roasted garlic. Would love to try it with smoked garlic!
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Thanks Angie, roasted garlic is wonderful too.
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