This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate I earn qualifying purchases. Click here for more about this policy.
This low-calorie potato soup recipe is low-fat, dairy-free, and packed with flavor and pure comfort. A Healthy Potato Soup recipe that skips the heavy cream by using cauliflower to make a creamy soup that’s lighter!
Nothing beats a warm bowl of creamy potato soup on a chilly evening. This healthier potato soup captures that same great taste, but without all of the extra calories.
It uses blended cauliflower to thicken the broth into the creamy texture you love, but with more fiber and fewer calories. Plus, this soup comes together in 30 minutes in the Instant Pot, so you can enjoy it any night of the week!
If you like cauliflower dinner recipes, you will love my Pineapple Chicken Cauliflower Fried Rice and Cauliflower Broccoli Gratin!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Ultimate Comfort Food: There’s nothing more comforting than a warm bowl of creamy potato soup. This light potato soup recipe captures the same great flavor, but in a more nutritious way with fewer calories.
- Ready in 30 Minutes: Since this low fat potato soup comes together in the Instant Pot, the cook time is very short. You’ll have a hot bowl of soup in just half an hour!
- Perfect Appetizer or Side Dish: Since this low calorie potato soup doesn’t have any protein, it’s not a full meal. However, it makes the perfect appetizer or veggie side dish to go with your dinner.
- Lower Fat & Lower Calories: This low calorie potato soup recipe has way fewer calories than traditional potato soup recipes and less fat.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Cauliflower Florets: You’ll need to steam your cauliflower before you start cooking. Then let it cool before blending it to make a creamy base for the soup.
- Carrots, Celery, & Onion: This blend of aromatic veggies is also called a mirepoix. You can use fresh vegetables or use a frozen mirepoix blend.
- White Sweet Potato: These sweet potatoes are starchier and taste less sweet than orange sweet potatoes, but they are still nutritious and delicious. If you’re a sweet potato lover, try this ground turkey casserole too!
- Vegetable Broth: Create your soup base using a low-sodium vegetable broth. If you don’t need this recipe to be vegetarian, you can use chicken broth instead.
- Herbs: Dried herbs like thyme and rosemary add tons of flavor and make this soup smell delicious.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations & Dietary Modifications
- Use More Vegetables: While this soup is pretty much made from vegetables, you can always add more! Try this soup with spinach, kale, mushrooms, corn, or peas.
- Add Protein: Since this soup doesn’t have any protein, it’s not a full meal on its own, but you can add chicken, ham, or sausage to it and make it one. My creamy chicken soup has a similar flavor to this soup, but uses chicken.
- Try Different Potatoes: Since white sweet potatoes have a similar amount of carbs to regular potatoes, feel free to substitute them for Yukon Gold potatoes, Russets, or red potatoes.
- Add Toppings: Top your soup with some shredded vegan cheese or nutritional yeast for that cheesy flavor. You can also add green onions or chives on top!
For more vegetable-forward soups, try this lentil sweet potato soup and this high-protein minestrone.
How to Make Healthy Potato Soup
This healthy potato soup recipe is made in the Instant Pot and comes together quickly. Before you start making the soup itself, you need to steam the cauliflower florets. Cover them with water in the Instant Pot, secure the lid, and cook them at high pressure for 5 minutes. Then release all of the pressure, drain the water, and set them aside.
- Step 1: Sauté the Vegetables. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic to the bottom of the Instant Pot with olive oil and set it to saute. Cook them for about 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until they start to soften.
- Step 2: Add the Broth and Sweet Potatoes. Add the vegetable broth, sweet potatoes, and herbs to the Instant Pot and secure the lid. Set it to Manual High Pressure and cook it for 10 minutes. While it’s cooking, place the cauliflower in the blender and blend it until it’s smooth.
- Step 3: Stir in Blended Cauliflower. Once the soup is finished, use Quick Release to release all of the pressure. Then stir in the blended cauliflower and serve it hot.
Expert Tips
- Blend the Whole Soup: If you want a creamier, blended soup, you can use an immersion blender to blend the whole soup together. Blend it until it’s thin and creamy. If you’re not-dairy free, you can always add a tablespoon of fat free creamer to boost the creaminess of this heart healthy potato soup!
- Use Frozen or Riced Cauliflower: Make dinner easier and save time by using frozen cauliflower or cauliflower rice. You’ll need to set the timer to 0 minutes because the cauliflower will steam in the 5-10 minutes it takes to come to pressure. You can also use this guide for cooking cauliflower rice.
- Wait to Add Salt: Potatoes can absorb a lot of salt as they cook, so wait until just before serving to taste your soup and add salt, pepper, or other seasonings to your taste.
Storage Directions
- Storing: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also portion out and freeze this soup for a month.
- Reheating: Reheat your dairy-free potato soup in the microwave in 60-second increments. Stir between intervals to help it heat evenly. You can also reheat it on the stove over medium-low heat until it is heated through. If the soup is too thick, add a splash of vegetable broth to help thin it out. Be sure to thaw frozen leftovers in the refrigerator for 24 hours before reheating them.
Serving Suggestions
There’s nothing worse than craving comfort food, but not feeling like cooking a homemade meal. Luckily, this low-calorie potato soup comes together quickly without a lot of prep work or active cooking. You can have your comfort food in a hurry without the hassle. Plus, this version is healthier and has more fiber than other potato soups.
- This lighter potato soup makes the perfect side dish for a protein-rich main course like my healthy ground beef meatloaf or crockpot pot roast.
- You can’t go wrong pairing soup with bread! These pumpkin cornbread muffins are the perfect complement to this rich soup.
- You can enjoy a bowl of healthy potato soup for lunch and pair it with a high-fiber protein smoothie to make it a balanced meal.
Healthy Potato Soup Recipe FAQs
You can easily make this healthy potato soup on the stove. Start by sautéing the vegetables in a large pot. Then add the broth and potatoes and let it simmer for about 20-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft. You’ll still need to steam and blend the cauliflower in a separate pot.
Yes, I love a slow cooker potato soup! Add all of the ingredients to your crockpot and cook them on high for 6 hours. Again, you’ll need to steam the cauliflower separately and blend it. Then add it to the crockpot just before serving the soup.
This soup can develop a gluey texture if the cauliflower is over-blended. It can also happen if you use an immersion blender to blend the whole soup. It’s important to stop blending as soon as your vegetables reach their desired texture to avoid them turning gluey.
Traditional potato soup recipes can be higher in calories due to the use of heavy cream which is high in fat. By swapping the heavy cream for blended cauliflower or low-fat creamer, this reduces the calories from fat significantly. Also, be mindful of the cheese and bacon added to potato soup as those calories come from fat as well and can add up quickly.
More Delicious and Healthy Soup Recipes
If you tried this Healthy Potato Soup recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below.
Healthy Potato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 oz Cauliflower Florets
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil, or oil of choice
- ⅔ cup Celery, diced
- 1 cup Carrots, diced
- ½ cup White Onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon Garlic, minced
- 1 lb White Sweet Potato, or potato of choice, peeled and diced
- 4 cups Low Sodium Vegetable Broth
- 1 teaspoon Thyme
- ½ teaspoon Rosemary
- Salt and peper to taste
Instructions
- Place the cauliflower florets in the Instant Pot and cover the florets with water. Place the lid on the top of the pot and seal. Set the pot to high pressure for 5 minutes.
- While the pot is boiling, prep and cut the veggies. It will take 10-15 minutes for the pot to come to pressure before it counts down the 5 minutes. After the 5 minutes counts down, release the pressure and remove the lid.
- Drain the cauliflower in a colander and discard the water. Note, you can also boil the cauliflower in a regular pot on the stove if you prefer.
- Set the Instant Pot to sauté then add the olive oil to the pot along with the onions, garlic, celery and carrots. Sauté for 8 minutes stirring periodically to prevent the veggies from sticking.
- Add the remaining ingredients except the cauliflower. Cover the pot, seal and set to pressure cook 10 minutes. Again, it will take 10-15 minutes for your pot to come to pressure before it begins counting down.
- While the soup is pressure cooking, place the cauliflower in a blender and blend until thick and smooth.
- After the 10 minutes counts down, release the pressure and remove the lid. Stir in the blended cauliflower. Serve immediately with your favorite toppings and side of protein.
Notes
- If you want a smooth, non-chunky soup, you can use an immersion blender to blend down all of the vegetables.
- Save time by steaming frozen cauliflower or cooking and blending riced cauliflower instead of fresh.
- Wait until the end to add salt because potatoes can absorb too much salt as they cook.
- This healthy potato soup recipe makes 4 servings which is about 1 1/3 cups per serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
