For me, salads have always been a summer food and when winter comes calling, I’m always looking for a more seasonally appropriate way to get my veggies in. In an experimental cooking haze of refusing to follow recipes, I discovered my own formula for the perfect cozy vegetable dish: sheet pan soups.

Roasted veggies have always been a family favorite, but brussel sprout and broccoli side dishes get repetitive after a while. When I discovered I could throw my roasted veggies in a blender and serve them as a soup with grilled cheese, it completely changed my outlook on healthy eating. The best part of these recipes is that they’re multi-purpose: if you add less broth, the soup becomes a thick, creamy sauce great in pasta or rice bowls.

Roasted cauliflower broccoli cheddar 

Cooking time: one hour

Servings: six

This first soup is a dairy-free(ish) version of cult classic broccoli cheddar soup. Skip the heavy cream and cheese and substitute roasted cauliflower for a base that is creamy, rich and just as delicious. Of course, this recipe would not be complete without heaps of parmesan, but luckily for lactose intolerant folks, parmesan has low enough lactose levels to be considered lactose-free. For a simpler recipe, skip the broccoli and carrot and make a cheesy cauliflower cream soup or go easy on the broth for a mock cream sauce for pasta.

Ingredients:

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth 

1 head cauliflower

1 onion

4 cloves garlic

1 head broccoli

2 large carrots

2 cups parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Steps:

1. Prep your ingredients to avoid overstimulation from multitasking.

   1. Remove the stems and leaves from your broccoli and cauliflower and cut into small pieces. 

   2. Peel and shred your two carrots.

   3. Dice your onion (it doesn’t need to be precise since we will be blending it).

   4. Peel and dice your garlic.

   5. Grate 2 cups of parmesan.

2. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

3. Place your cauliflower on a baking sheet and coat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place in the oven once preheated. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until crispy and golden brown.

4. In a pan, heat up 1 tbsp of olive oil and sateé onions until translucent and golden.

5. Add garlic to pan and sauté until fragrant, making sure not to brown the garlic.

6. While your onions are cooking, steam broccoli for ten minutes and set aside when ready.

7. When the cauliflower is ready, place it in your blender with the onions and garlic, parmesan cheese and broth. Blend until smooth. (You may need to separate your ingredients in half and do this in two parts depending on the size of your blender).

8. Pour blended mixture into a large pot and stir in carrots and broccoli.

9. Serve with toast or grilled cheese and enjoy!

Roasted butternut squash soup

Cooking time: one hour

Servings: six

I challenge myself to a new vegetable every month to avoid the carrot and cucumber salad rut I often find myself in. This month I tackled dauntingly undiscovered territory: butternut squash. While technically this “vegetable” is a fruit, we will pretend otherwise for the sake of this recipe. When I was growing up my mom tried to sneak squash into everything despite my picky protests. Now, I concede she was correct as this recipe is delicious and so seasonally appropriate.

Ingredients:

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth 

1 butternut squash

1 onion

4 cloves garlic

1 cup parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Steps:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. Peel and gut your squash and cut into half moon slices.

3. Coat squash in olive oil, salt and pepper and place in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown, making sure to flip the slices halfway through.

4. While the squash is cooking, dice your onion and garlic and grate your cheese.

5. In a pan, heat up 1 tbsp of olive oil and sateé onions until translucent and golden.

6. Add garlic to pan and sateé until fragrant, making sure not to brown the garlic.

7. Add all ingredients to your blender and blend with broth until smooth.

8. Serve with grilled cheese or as a pasta sauce with pan fried prosciutto and enjoy!

Gallery • 1 Photos

Roasted butternut squash soup served as a pasta sauce and garnished with roasted brussel sprouts and parmesan. (Jess McComb/Emerald)