This Pressure Cooker Sunshine soup is loaded with good for you ingredients and is a perfect canvas for all your favorite toppings
This soup . . . ❤❤❤. I could happily leave it at that. Actually some people might love it if I did stop with all the jabbering and cut straight to the recipe . . . mom? Just teasin', she's got my back, always. But my goodness, this (Instant Pot) Pressure Cooker Magic Sunshine Soup (otherwise known as Turmeric Soup) is somethin' else.
It's pretty common to find a lot of online recipes using Turmeric to be called “golden”. Turmeric is very popular for both its breathtaking color and its anti-inflammatory properties. There are also claims that it helps with digestive, heart, and skin health. And of course it just really tastes amazing if used correctly (i.e. too much can be REALLY overpowering).
I adapted the recipe from Pinch of Yum's gorgeous Golden Soup. When my son started in on his 3rd bowl of this soup, he exclaimed, “What is this soup mom!?” I told him it was called Golden Soup which he thought was the coolest thing ever. Then as he was licking the last of his brother's bowl, he said, “Mom, I think you should call it magic sunshine soup because it's yellow and makes me feel warm inside.”
Ahhh! Can you even handle the wonderful, cute wisdom of youth! I loved it so much and this soup is therefore and forever going to be called Magic Sunshine Soup on my blog and in my home.
Lindsay from Pinch of Yum added cashews to this recipe to give it an amazingly silky, luscious texture. However, I didn't realize until it was too late that I didn't have any plain cashews so I had to pick the cashews from a can of mixed nuts instead.
And guess what? It was amazing! I was able to achieve a “roasted” warm taste in a pressure cooker, which we all know, lacks deeply in “roasting” anything. I've since gone with unsalted roasted cashews and I like the fact that I can control the salt factor but still get the roasted taste. So whether you have plain unsalted unroasted, salted roasted, or unsalted roasted cashews, throw them in the pot! It'll turn out glorious either way.
If you don't want to mess with the butternut squash, you could leave that out or use this Instant Pot Butternut Squash trick to make it really easy to chop one up.
I hope you ❤❤❤ this soup as much as we did! It's not often I can get the family to agree on 1 meal, but this one was a total winner (even with my very supportive, wonderful mother I mentioned above).
Enjoy!
Don't miss these other Soups and Sides
- Baked Potato Soup
- Short Cut Chicken Noodle Soup
- White Chicken Chili
- Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Triple Bean Chili
- Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup
- Whole Wheat Cranberry Pecan No Knead Crusty Bread
- Whole Wheat Jalapeño Cheddar No Knead Crusty Bread
Tools Used to Make Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Magic Sunshine Soup
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PrintPressure Cooker Magic Sunshine Soup
Perfect for cold dark days, this Sunshine Soup will energize and nourish you from the inside out!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Soup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 20 ounces of cauliflower florets (about 7 cups)
- 2 cups chopped butternut squash (optional, omit if you don't like squash)
- 1 cup roasted, unsalted cashews (can substitute plain cashews or roasted, salted cashews)
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 2 teaspoons salt (decrease to 1 teaspoon if using salted cashews)
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (omit for no kick, however it is mild)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- juice of 1 lemon
For the Roasted Broccoli
- 1 head of broccoli cut into small florets (about 5 cups)
- about 2 tablespoons olive oil
- kosher salt
- ground black pepper
Precooked Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage (or whatever flavor of sausage you like)
For Serving
- lemon wedges
- Sriracha
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees (this will be for the broccoli and sausage that we will address after the soup).
- Preheat the pressure cooker by selecting saute. Melt butter and oil, then add onion, garlic, cauliflower, butternut squash, cashews, turmeric, salt, and cayenne. Saute for about 5 minutes or until the vegetables start to soften and the color of the turmeric deepens slightly. Add chicken broth and lemon juice and stir lightly.
- Hit cancel. Secure the lid and turn pressure release knob to a sealed position. Cook at high pressure for 10 minutes.
- While the soup cooks, place the broccoli in a gallon size ziplock bag. Add olive oil, seal the bag, and shake to coat the broccoli with oil. Prepare a cookie sheet pan with nonstick spray or with nonstick tinfoil. Spread broccoli out on the pan and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until tender and crisp. Place sausage in a pan next to the broccoli so it can heat through and crisp up on the exterior. This will take 10-15 minutes. Watch that it doesn't' burn.
- When pressure cooking is complete, use a natural release for 10 minutes and then release any remaining pressure. Could also carefully use a quick release if you're in a hurry.
- Carefully pour or ladle pot contents in to a blender (be sure not to overfill blender; do in batches if needed). You can also use an immersion blender directly in the pot, but the high powered blender works much better with the cashews. If using a regular blender, place a hand towel over the lid to prevent any splatters. Process until very smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Add extra chicken broth to thin, if desired. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- To serve, top with a handful of roasted broccoli and sausage. Add a few dots of Sriracha for extra spice.
Freezer Meal Instructions:
- To a freezer safe gallon size ziplock, add onion, garlic, cauliflower, butternut squash, cashews, turmeric, salt, and cayenne pepper; seal the bag. Label the bag with the recipe, date, and contents. Freeze inside pressure cooker pot until solid, then remove the bag from the pot and place back in the freezer until ready to use.
- When ready to cook, add 1 tablespoon butter, chicken broth, and juice of 1 lemon to the pressure cooker pot. Cut down the sides of the ziplock and place the frozen ingredients into the pot.
- Cook at high pressure for 15 minutes then proceed with the rest of the directions above.
Keywords: pressure cooker, instant pot, soup, healthy soup
OMG! I made this exactly according to the recipe (I did use frozen butternut squash and unsalted cashews). I’m not a huge fan of squash soup, but I figured the cauliflower and cashews made it worth a try. No wonder your son enjoyed it! It has the most flavorful, almost sweet, but not sweet taste. I haven’t even added the broccoli or sausage yet, and I know this will be a huge hit.
Thank you for sharing! I will make this again and again. So easy and so good!
Karin, I’m so excited to hear this! I was shocked how much my kids loved this one. I make it often because I love how many veggies they’re getting with it.
Hey. For the frozen method, I’m assuming the sautéing step is omitted. Right? Also, why freeze the veggies in a bag IN the pot, then take out the pot. Thank you for your time.
★★★★★
Shelia, Yes, when I cook it from frozen, I just skip that step. The difference is small.
I freeze it in the pot first to make sure the frozen shape is the exact shape I need it to be to cook it. Does that make sense?
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This soup is very good!! I have been looking for hearty soup recipes, and was also curious about trying Tumeric but was somewhat skeptical. The flavors meld so well together with a smooth and unique taste. Thank you for the great recipe!!
★★★★★
Danielle, I’m so glad you loved it! I’ve been skeptical of Tumeric for years but have fallen in love with it over the past year. Thanks for letting me know!
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I have renamed this soup “Magic Blow Your Socks Off Soup”! I have never liked BNS soup recipes before and figured out that it was primarily because they had a ‘sweet’ taste to it and I can’t stand “sweet’. I am a savory, spicy kind of gal and this recipe caught my eye. I had received some BNS in my CSA farm box, and groaned. Unless someone has a chainsaw to cut it for me, it will go to waste. But Marci came to the rescue – not once, but twice! – with her post about how to cook the whole squash in the IP to begin with; and then had this amazing, out of this world recipe to top it off. The flavors are fantastic – perfect for my palette. Roasting the broccoli is a ‘must’ so don’t skip that step. However, I did choose to blend the broccoli rather than leave it, as shown in the recipe. Make this recipe! It will be a favorite, as it is now mine! Thank you, Marci!
★★★★★
Gail, Best comment ever ever ever! I’m very particular with butternut squash recipes, and I agree, they’ve got to be more savory than sweet. Try the Healthy Nacho Cheese Sauce next! You will love that!
I am going to try making this today. It looks so good! Do you think it would work with frozen squash? I already have that in my freezer.
Kyra, Yep, for sure. I freeze squash all the time so I can have it ready and waiting for the pressure cooker.
I recommend soaking the cashews first. then easier to blend and can use an immersion blender.
Hillary, I’ll have to try that. I was hoping I could skip that step since they were in the pressure cooker, but the immersion blender didn’t get it quite as silky as the tabletop blender. Thanks for the tip!
My husband refuses to eat anything with cauliflower. Is there anything that I could substitute? This sounds amazing, and I really want to try it.
Susan, he will never know it is in there! Try it!
Susan, I agree with Karen, unless he has some crazy allergy to it or something, I really don’t think he’ll notice it. You could always try peeled zucchini or more butternut squash would also work.