Spring Detox Soup

A detox soup can be enjoyed any time of year to help boost immunity, remove toxins and give your body the clean fuel it needs to sustain you. I love to eat detox soup at the start of spring when my body is coming out of winter hibernation.

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A spring detox soup is best made using seasonal, local, organic ingredients. It is important to use ingredients that reflect the season you are in because these ingredients are fresher, tastier, and more nutritious than produce harvested out of its season.

This recipe uses homemade vegetable broths but chicken bone broth can be substituted for added nutrients, protein and flavor.

Yield: about 4 quarts

Ingredients:

• 2 inches ginger, minced

• 1 yellow onion, medium diced

• 1 medium fennel (about 1 1/2 cups) medium dice

• 3 cups celery, medium dice

• 1 yellow or white carrot, medium dice (about 1 cup)

• 1 jalapeno, small diced (optional)

• 1 cup green garlic tops (can substitute for 3 garlic cloves)

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tsp exotica spice (equal parts ground cumin, carraway, coriander, & fennel seed)

• 1.5 cups broccoli stems

• 3/4 cup yukon gold potatoes, medium dice (about 2 potatoes)

• 1 1/2 cups dandelion greens, chopped

• 1 bunch kale, chopped and loosely packed (about 3 cups)

• ¼ lb nettles, chopped (about 2 cups)

• 64 fl oz vegetable broth

• 1 cup english peas, shelled

• 2 cups snap peas, sliced

• 1 cup carrot tops, chopped (can sub parsley)

• 2 TBSP salt (or to taste)

• 1 meyer lemon zest + juice

Directions:

1. Start by cutting and measuring out all of your ingredients.

2. In a large soup pot over medium heat, add olive oil and saute ginger, onion, fennel, celery, carrot, jalapeno, and green garlic tops with a pinch of salt and exotica spice (a mix of ground cumin, coriander, fennel and caraway seed) for approximately 10 minutes or until onions are soft or translucent.

3. Add the potato and broccoli to the sauteed vegetables, stir and cook for about 5 minutes.

4. Add vegetable broth to the pot and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes.

5. Add the kale, dandelion greens, nettles, and carrot tops to the pot and simmer on low for 5 minutes then turn off the heat.

6. Add english peas, snap peas and lemon zest to the pot, stir and let steep for 10 to 15 minutes in the pot.

7. Blend the soup in a high sleep blender In batches then pass through a fine strainer.

8. Season soup with meyer lemon juice and taste to salt.

9. Enjoy soup on its own, or with a drizzle of yogurt and chive flowers.

How to make your own broth

• Save all of your vegetable scraps in a gallon bag in the freezer until the gallon bag is full.

  • I like to save the peels and scraps of carrot, celery, fennel, onion, english pea shells, mushroom stems, apple cores, cabbage leaves etc.

  • Your broth will taste like the ingredients you use. I personally love a little sweetness from apple cores and the subtle flavor of peas.

• Once you have a gallon bag full of vegetable scrap, place the scraps in a large soup pot or an Instant pot and barely cover with cold water. Pressure cook on low for 20 minutes or gently simmer on the stove top for one hour. Then strain and reserve liquid for cooking.

• You can freeze your broth in quart or pint size containers and use it to make soups or enjoy it like a cup of tea.

Optional: if you would like, you can add things like ginger, dried shiitake mushrooms or astragalus root to your broth for added umami and immune boosting properties!

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