Cauliflower & apple soup

Well my recipe's tend to lighten the blog a bit and add something a little bit different.
I try to choose easy recipes that are useful to know about and are generally good for you and of course a little off the wall, as they say. So, here is one I made just the other day.

I make Cauliflower and walnut soup quite a bit in the autumn, but that can make a grayish soup, plus some people don't like walnuts it tastes nice to me but you feast with your eyes first, so this one is made with apple rather than the walnuts.

As part of the brassica family, more commonly known as cruciferous vegetables, cauliflower contains antioxidants and phytonutrients that can protect against cancer, fiber that helps with satiety, weight loss and a healthy digestive tract, choline that is essential for learning and memory as well as many other important nutrients. Just one serving of cauliflower contains 77 percent of the recommended daily value of vitamin C. It's also a good source of vitamin K, protein, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, magnesium, phosphorus, fiber, vitamin B6, folate, pantothenic acid, potassium, and manganese.

Ingredients

• 50g butter
• 4 onion, thinly sliced
• 1½ kg cauliflower (about 2 large cauliflowers), broken up into very small florets
• 8 eating apple - 6 cored, peeled and chopped, 2 unpeeled and cut into matchsticks
• 2 vegetable stock cubes, or gluten-free alternative, crumbled
• 1½ l milk
• 8 tbsp single cream
• olive oil, for drizzling
• a few thyme sprigs, leaves picked

Method

1.      Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the onions and fry gently until softened. Add the cauliflower and diced apple and fry for 5 more mins. Add the stock cubes and milk and bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 mins, or until the cauliflower and apples are tender.

2.      Use a hand blender or liquidiser to purée the soup until smooth and season (the soup can now be chilled for up to 48 hours or frozen, just reheat to serve). Divide into bowls and swirl 1 tbsp cream in each along with a drizzle of oil. Top with the apple matchsticks and thyme.