For many of us, the beginning of a new year brings renewed resolutions to improve overall health. Part of this may be a commitment to make healthier food choices or perhaps to lose a little weight. Maybe you are just looking to detox some of the overindulgence of the holidays. Whatever your goals, achieving success will depend on the satisfaction of your food choices.
Our food choices affect overall health and well-being. Food is the fuel of the body. In our busy lives it is easy to look for the quickest food available. Quick-fix options or liquid diets (such as juicing, shakes or smoothies) can leave the body lacking important nutrition. Often these are higher-calorie, unbalanced choices. Often these choices also leave you hungry or feeling less than satisfied with a meal. Unsatisfying food or meal options makes it easy to abandon new resolutions.
A better option is to use satisfying, tasty and health-enriching food options. A budget-friendly option to meet your needs and goals is special soup blends. These soups enlist the help of certain spices to add flavor as well as serve special health needs. The tasty combinations of vegetables, broth and spices tickle the taste buds. Most importantly, your stomach feels full. The act of chewing and savoring flavors sends a message from taste buds to stomach and back to your brain saying, "Wow, this is great!" The best part of adding soups to your weekly line-up of meals is the ease of preparation. Additionally, it is possible to serve these soups to the entire family, eliminating the need to make separate meals. Making use of crockpots or cooking and freezing adds to the ease of soup meals.
Dr. Dianna Richardson of the Health, Wellness & Nutrition Center in Jefferson City has served communities as a wellness practitioner for more than 20 years. Core to her practice has been the use of nutrition to enhance health and improve vitality.
A favorite detox soup that doubles as a healthy, low-calorie meal is a less-than-30-minute lunch or dinner. The lemon in the recipe supports detoxification processes while providing a burst of Vitamin C. Ginger is included to improve digestion and improve immunity. In the heart of cold and flu season, the natural cold-fighting properties of ginger may help fight off these viruses. Turmeric brings antiseptic, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties to help the clearing processes. Finally, the Ceylon cinnamon adds blood sugar-stabilizing abilities to keep balance and reduce hunger signals.
This soup is easily added to a weekly menu, making it a great choice to boost health. Whether you are using the soup to aid in a weight-loss program, as a detox option or simply as a healthy budget-fitting option, this soup will quickly become a family favorite! Most importantly, it is hunger-satisfying without guilt.
Satisfying Detox Soup
Makes: 6 servings
Ingredients:
cup water (or vegetable broth)
red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 celery stalks, diced
3 medium carrots, diced
1 small head of broccoli, florets
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon powdered turmeric
teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste (optional)
Fine-grain sea salt and black pepper, to taste
6 cups water (or 4 cups vegetable broth + 2 cups water)
2 cups kale, de-stemmed and torn in pieces
1 cup purple cabbage, chopped
Juice from small lemon (or whole lemon, depending how much lemon flavor you prefer)
Directions: In a large pot, add the water and turn on the heat to medium-high. After it's hot, add the onion and garlic. Saut© for two minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the celery, carrots, broccoli, tomatoes and fresh ginger. Stir and cook for three to five minutes (until vegetables are tender), adding extra water or broth as needed (another cup). Stir in the turmeric, cinnamon and cayenne pepper plus salt and pepper to taste. Add the water or vegetable broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are soft. Add the kale, cabbage and lemon juice near the last two to three minutes of simmering.
Note: This recipe is diabetic-friendly, gluten-free, vegetarian and dairy-free.