A fair warning to those readers who are vampires: STOP reading this immediately. Seriously. I don’t want to be responsible for you turning into ashes. To everyone else, garlic lovers especially, read on.
I’ve created a soup to pretty much put you right in your garlic happy place. A soup so infused with a rich and creamy garlic-potato base that you’ll be in pure garlic ecstasy. But not to worry! As much garlic as we’re putting in this soup, it won’t be overkill! In fact, it will be the absolute PERFECT balance of creaminess, cheesiness and garlic-ness. And I just know it is going to become a household staple for MANY of you (except the vampires).
And I’ll never stop saying it. NOTHING can make a soup like the Instant Pot! Not only does it slice the cooking time down to a fraction, but it also infuses the flavor so beautifully.
Oh! And BONUS! This recipe not only tell you how to make this astounding soup, but ALSO shows you how to make the BEST roasted garlic AND garlic bread ever! THREE for the bulb of ONE!
Here’s How I Made It!:
Start off by pre-heating your oven.
Now take three whole bulbs of garlic (not cloves, BULBS – about 10-20 cloves make up each bulb of garlic)…
…and scalp them by slicing the tops off…
…so the cloves are exposed.
Then take an onion…
…and dice it up.
As well as a few potatoes…
…peeled and also cut into chunks. We’ll get back to these and the onion in a bit so set them aside for now.
Go to the Instant Pot, lay in the trivet and add in some water.
Then rest the garlic bulbs on the trivet, secure the lid and cook at high pressure.
While the garlic’s cooking, prepare the garlic bread. Take a 12″ loaf of Italian or French bread…
…and slice it in half longways.
Now let’s make our GAHLIC-BUTTA mixture! Melt some butter in the microwave…
…get some Garlic Better Than Bouillon (a key ingredient in this recipe!)…
…and add it to the melted butter…
…along with some grated Parmesan…
…and Italian seasoning.
Mix together well…
…and then brush it on the bread. Set aside while we check on our garlic…
…which is done! Remove it from the Instant Pot…
…and place it on a foil-lined baking sheet along with the garlic bread.
Next, take some extra virgin olive oil…
…and drizzle it into each bulb so it seeps into every nook & cranny.
Ain’t that pretty?
Pop the baking tray with the bread and the garlic into the oven on the rack that’s about 3/4 the height of the oven (so between the halfway notch and the highest notch in the oven. Don’t do it on the highest notch or the bread will want to burn). Keep an eye on it as all ovens vary.
When the bread is toasty and and the garlic browned, it’s done! Set aside to cool.
Now let’s go back to the Instant Pot where we’ve removed the trivet and dumped out the water from the garlic. Add in some butter and give it some heat…
…so that once the butter’s melted and sizzlin’…
…we add in our onions…
…along with some diced prosciutto (or diced pancetta or bacon).
Cook for a few minutes until softened and lightly browned in color. You can remove the liner pot from the Instant Pot once it is because now we’re going to focus on…
…our beautiful, browned & roasted garlic!
Once it’s cool to the touch, squeeze each clove so that the garlic meat pops right out of the clove skin and into a bowl! It will literally come right out and be almost paste-like in consistency.
Do this with all the cloves of garlic and discard the skin of the garlic.
Now return the liner pot to the Instant Pot and deglaze (scrape) the bottom of the pot to get up any meat or oil that may have stuck…
…and add in some garlic broth…
…some chicken broth (or all garlic broth if keeping it vegetarian/vegan, which, in that case – don’t use the prosciutto either obviously)…
…a little lemon juice…
…and some dry white (or white cooking) wine.
Add in the potatoes…
…the garlic meat…
…some dried thyme…
…and some black pepper.
Stir well and deglaze the bottom of the pot again! Secure the lid and cook at high pressure.
While the soup’s cooking, go back to our garlic bread which should be cooled and nice and toasty on the outside…
…and slice it up into large, chunky cubes. AND BINGO! We now have GARLIC BREAD CROUTONS that are toasty on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside! (Note: The more these are left out at room temperature, the more they will crunch up throughout – so if you have some leftover after serving and they’re left out overnight with a paper towel over them, you’ll see that will happen!)
Also, take some chives…
…and slice them up.
When the soups done cooking, take an immersion blender (or transfer in batches to a regular blender, but an immersion blender is way, WAY easier and less messy)…
…and blend until puréed.
Finally, add in some grated Parmesan…
…a little heavy cream (leave this and the Parmesan out if going vegan)…
…add the immersion blender back in…
…and blend for a few more seconds.
When done, you’ll have achieved perfection. Take a ladle…
…and distribute into bowls.
Put on the finishing touches with that scrumptious garlic bread crouton…
…the chives…
…and we are ready to serve this game-changing soup up.
It’s a good thing there’s lots of garlic bread croutons to go around because you’re gonna want to keep dipping them in the soup…
…to the point where you’ll just say “SCREW THE SPOON!” and drink it like a cup of tea in order to get every. last. vampire-fending. drop. (Having a bowl with handles helps).
SIMPLY SPECTACULAR and OUT OF YOUR WILDEST GARLIC DREAMS!
Instant Pot Roasted Garlic Soup
If you wanted a soup that tastes beyond spectacular, builds immunity AND wards off vampires, you've just met the soup for you. The garlic bread croutons really complete it.
Ingredients
For The Roasted Garlic:
- 3 full bulbs of garlic, fully in tact with the tops sliced off of each (these are not to be confused with cloves – bulbs are made up of about 10-20 cloves each)
- 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil (divided into 1 tbsp per bulb)
For The Garlic Bread Croutons:
- 12″ loaf of Italian or French bread, sliced in half longways
- 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) of salted butter, melted (30 seconds in the microwave will do it)
- 1/4 tsp of Garlic Better Than Bouillon
- 1 tsp of grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 tsp of Italian seasoning
For The Soup:
- 2 tbsp (1/4 stick) of salted butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 oz of diced prosciutto or pancetta or bacon (optional, but if using, I strongly suggest the diced prosciutto as it adds sensational flavor)
- 1.5 lbs of Idaho/Russet potatoes, peeled and diced into chunks
- 3 cups of Garlic Broth (I used 1 tbsp of Garlic Better Than Bouillon + 3 cups of water)
- 3 cups of Chicken Broth (I used 1 tbsp of Chicken Better Than Bouillon + 3 cups of water)
- 1/2 cup of a dry white wine (like a Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc or white cooking wine is fine too)
- Juice of half a lemon (or 1 tbsp of lemon juice)
- 1 tsp of dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp of black pepper
- 1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup of heavy cream
- Sliced chives, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees
- Add 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot, lay in the trivet and rest the 3 garlic bulbs on it, sliced side facing-up. Secure the lid and hit “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” High Pressure for 5 minutes. When done, allow a 10 minute natural release followed by a quick release and hit the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button when done
- While the garlic’s cooking, make the garlic bread by combining the melted butter, Garlic Better Than Bouillon, Parmesan and Italian seasoning. Place the bread on a foil-lined baking sheet and brush the garlic butter mixture onto the bread
- Next, take the garlic bulbs from the Instant Pot and place on the same baking sheet with the bread and drizzle in 1 tbsp of olive oil per bulb, allowing the oil to seep into every nook and cranny of each bulb. Pop the baking sheet in the oven for 5-10 minutes on a rack level about 3/4 of the height the oven (higher than the middle but not the top rack because the bread will want to burn). Once the surface of the bread is toasty to the look and touch and the garlic is nice and browned (but neither should be burned), it will be done and ready to take out of the oven (Note: all ovens vary so keep an eye on it, but mine was perfect in 8 minutes). Allow them to cool
- Go back to the Instant Pot and after removing the trivet, dumping the water and drying it off, hit “Sauté” and “Adjust” so it’s on the “More” or “High” setting. Add the butter and once melted and bubbling, add the onion and let cook for 2-3 minutes and then add in the diced prosciutto and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Remove the liner pot from the Instant Pot to avoid burning while we focus on our garlic
- By now, the garlic should be relatively cool to the touch. Take each bulb and clove of garlic and squeeze the garlic meat into a bowl (it will pop right out and be almost paste-like – fascinating!). Discard any of the skin from the garlic as we only want to reserve the garlic meat (your hands will get messy from this, but that means you’re doing a good job!)
- Return the liner pot to the Instant Pot, deglaze (scrape) the bottom to get up any stuck-on prosciutto grease and add in the garlic broth, chicken broth, lemon juice, white wine, potatoes, roasted garlic, dried thyme and black pepper. Secure the lid, hit “Keep Warm/Cancel” and then hit “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” High Pressure for 8 minutes. Quick release when done
- While the soup’s cooking, cut the now cooled and toasted garlic bread into 1″ cubes (it should be toasty on the outside and softer on the inside – PERFECT for sopping up the soup!)
- When the lid comes off the pot, take an immersion blender and blend everything until puréed. Add in the Parmesan and heavy cream and purée once more
- Ladle into bowls, add in desired amount of garlic bread croutons and sprinkle on some chives for garnish
- Enjoy! (and stock up on some mints)
Jeffrey's Tips
This is literally one of the greatest soups I’ve ever made. The taste is beyond your wildest garlic dreams and is just sheer perfection. And the Garlic Better Than Bouillon is a HUGE key player in that. If you can’t find it at your local market (many do have it), you can get it here or here! If you can’t find it and don’t feel like buying it (although you so should), just use chicken broth and add another bulb or two of garlic.
Want it vegetarian? Use only garlic broth and leave out the diced prosciutto! Want it vegan? DO the same and don’t use the Parmesan cheese and use a vegan-friendly cream substitute for the heavy cream!
If you want to make the garlic bread on its own, simply follow steps 3 & 4!
If you want to make the roasted garlic on its own, simply follow steps 2 & 4! When slightly cooled, squeeze out the garlic meat and spread on some toasted Italian or French bread and top with some parmesan, salt, pepper and a little olive oil if you wish!
Mike in NC
This was our first recipe from your site, and it was delicious. Just smooth and creamy enough, but just thick enough to leave a path in the bowl with a spoon. The croutons are so worth the extra effort. My Instant Pot would not come to pressure on the 2nd round for some reason; couldn’t find anything wrong, so just let it cook, covered, for about 30 minutes, and then used the immersion blender. Worked fine. Thanks.
Chelsea
I make this soup at least twice a month at my family’s request. I couldn’t be more happy to oblige! It is delicious!