Low-Carb Cauliflower and Mushroom Pressure Cooker Soup with Parmesan

A few years ago I bought a Kuhn Rikon Pressure Cooker, and shared a few Pressure Cooker Recipes on the blog.  So when my sister Pam got a new Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker, and my friend Barbara started a blog about using the electric pressure cooker, I really didn’t think I needed another pressure cooker.  Then I got a couple of Amazon gift cards, and the next thing you know, a new electric pressure cooker arrived at my house!

So far I’ve only used it to make chicken stock, and then this amazing soup, but I’m already pretty infatuated with the new electric pressure cooker.  If I had to pick one feature, it would be the way you can set the time and walk away, knowing the pressure cooker will stop cooking and release the pressure, even if you forget about it.

Since there’s no flour, butter, milk, or cream, this delicious low-carb Cauliflower and Mushroom Pressure Cooker Soup with Parmesan is perfect for January when everyone is focused on lighter meals, and it’s also my Meatless Monday recipe for the week.

This soup was partly inspired by Cafe Zupas Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup, a rich and creamy and decidedly not diet-friendly soup I tasted a few months ago, but I have to be honest and say it was also inspired by a desire to use some slightly-past-its-prime cauliflower I had in the fridge.  Mushrooms were the perfect umami-adding ingredient to bump up the flavor, and I loved how the soup turned out.  Of course you can make the soup in a regular stove-top pressure cooker (or even in a pan on top of the stove, adding more liquid, and simmering until the vegetables are tender.)

 

You can saute the onions, garlic, and thyme in the pressure cooker, but I used a pan so it was easier to get a photo!

I also sauteed the brown Crimini mushrooms before I put them into the pressure cooker.  (You can use regular white mushrooms, but these brown ones, also called Baby Bellas, have more flavor.)

Cut up about 4 cups of small cauliflower pieces, and if you look closely you can tell that mine had a few brown edges cut off!

Put the onions, cauliflower, mushrooms, and stock into the pressure cooker.  Set the pressure cooker for 5 minutes at high pressure (or bring stove-top pressure cooker to high pressure and cook 5 minutes.)  I wasn’t in a hurry, so I let the pressure release naturally, but you could also use the quick-release.

Then use an Immersion Blenderto puree the soup, leaving it a little chunky if you prefer.  Barbara says be careful, because some immersion blenders can scratch the pressure cooker, but mine was okay.  (You can also puree in a food processor or blender, but the immersion blender is much easier.)

Add the 3/4 cup of Parmesan cheese and simmer 5-10 minutes, or until all the cheese has melted into the soup.

Serve hot, with freshly-grated Parmesan cheese or sour cream to add at the table.

(Makes 4-6 servings; recipe created by Kalyn when she had a new pressure cooker to experiment with.)

I made this in the Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker but you can definitely use the Instant Pot or a stovetop pressure cooker if that’s what you have.

Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in the bottom of the pressure cooker (or in a non-stick frying pan).  Add the onions and saute until they’re starting to brown, about 5-7 minutes.  (Use the saute setting on the electric pressure cooker or medium-high heat on the stove.)  Add the minced garlic and thyme and cook 1-2 minutes more.

Put onions in a bowl (or add them to the pressure cooker if you used a pan to saute the onions.)  Heat the other teaspoon of olive oil and saute the mushrooms until they’re lightly browned and all the liquid is evaporated, about 5 minutes.

Put the onion mixture, mushrooms, cauliflower, and stock into the pressure cooker and set to cook for 5 minutes time at high pressure.  (For stovetop pressure cooker, bring to high pressure and cook 5 minutes.)  I let the pressure release naturally because I wasn’t in a hurry, but you can also use the quick release method.  Use an Immersion Blender to puree the soup, leaving it a little chunky if you prefer.  (You can also puree in a food processor or blender, but be careful with the hot liquid if you use one of those.)

Add the 3/4 cup Parmesan and simmer 5-10 minutes, or until all the cheese has melted into the soup.  Serve hot, with freshly-grated Parmesan cheese or sour cream to add at the table.

This delicious low-carb soup would be approved for all phases of the South Beach Diet, as well as most other low-carb and low-glycemic diet plans.

Use the Recipes by Diet Type photo index pages to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

If you want nutritional information for a recipe, I recommend entering the recipe into Calorie Count, which will calculate it for you. Or if you’re a member of Yummly, you can use the Yum button on my site to save the recipe and see the nutritional information there.