After the green detox smoothie it is time for an orange detox soup! With one of my favorite vegetables: pumpkin. I used a butternut squash recipe I found online somewhere, substituted pumpkin and added a few things to make it even more nutritious and delightful! *
Speaking of detox, it is nice to give your system a break sometimes and spend a day (or more) eating light foods that help to promote the body’s natural detoxification process. That’s exactly what I did a few days ago with a green detox smoothie for breakfast, the orange detox soup for lunch and a roasted beet arugula salad for dinner. Nothing in between except lots of water and coconut water. A little mini cleanse of sorts that felt like a bit of a re-boot. Lovely. Try it!
Ingredients:
(serves 4)
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 inch piece fresh ginger, minced
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/8 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1/8 tsp cardamom powder
- pinch of ground cloves
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1 green apple, peeled and chopped
- 4 cups chopped pumpkin
- sea salt and pepper to taste
- 2 cups chopped kale leaves (center ribs removed)
- 1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
Preparation:
- Heat the coconut oil in a large sauce pan
- Add onion and garlic and cook until translucent
- Add ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and cook for 1 minute
- Add pumpkin, carrots, apple and 3 cups water
- Add salt and pepper to taste
- Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to simmer
- Cook for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender
- Allow to cool and puree (in a blender or with a hand-held blender)
- Transfer back to the pan, reheat and adjust seasoning if required
- In a small frying pan, steam-sautee the kale leaves for a few minutes in a few tablespoons of water until bright green
- Ladle the soup into individual bowls, top with kale leaves and a sprinkling of pumpkin seeds
- Enjoy!
* Pumpkin is loaded with fiber and vitamin A which promotes health eye sight, skin, teeth and bones. It contains the anti-oxidant beta-carotene which may help in cancer prevention, vitamin C and potassium among other things. Onion and garlic are sulfur containing foods that enhance the production of glutathione: the master anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory agent. Ginger and turmeric also have powerful anti-inflammatory properties. Cinnamon helps with blood sugar regulation, cardamom helps with digestion (as does clove) and has detoxifying properties. Kale is a nutritional powerhouse: the king of green leafy vegetables and pumpkin seeds contain protein, fiber, zinc, the sleep-enhancing amino acid tryptophan and lots of other important vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants. And these are just some of the benefits contained in this soup!
