Cleansing Creamy Asparagus Soup

Recipes

Creamy Asparagus Cleansing Soup

makes 4 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 25 minutes

WHAT YOU NEED:

  • 1 ½ LBS asparagus, trimmed
  • 1 TB butter
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 ¼ C low-sodium chicken broth
  • Sea salt + red pepper flakes, to taste
  • ½ tsp lemon juice
  • ½ C cream from the top of a coconut milk can
  • Optional: Parmesan cheese, to top

TO MAKE:

  • Cut asparagus into ½-inch pieces.
  • Cook onion + garlic in the butter over medium heat – cook until tender- about 7-8 minutes. Add asparagus and cook 5 more minutes.
  • Stir in the chicken broth, cover, + let simmer 10-15 minutes or until asparagus is softened.
  • Using a hand blender or a countertop blender (you may need to blend in batches)- puree soup until smooth. Stir in the coconut cream, salt + pepper flakes, + lemon juice.
  • Top with Parmesan if you like or any other toppings like: grilled whole grain bread “croutons,” heart-healthy hemp hearts, or anything you think sounds good!

HEALTH BENEFITS OF ASPARAGUS:

  • Being low in calories, but high in water content + has fiber, it fills you up with nutrients and keeping you fuller, longer.
  • The fiber content helps improve digestion. The vegetable also acts like a diuretic. (Hence your green + stinky potty time after eating.)
  • Asparagus is low in calories, but bursting with nutrients like A, C, E, + K, folate, fiber, potassium, iron, zinc and riboflavin. The most prevalent vitamin is K, an essential nutrient involved in blood clotting and bone health.
  • Asparagus is particularly high in the flavonoids quercetin, isorhamnetin and kaempferol. These substances have been found to have blood pressure-lowering, anti-inflammatory, antiviral and anticancer effects in a number of studies.
  • Asparagus is high in folate (vitamin B9), an important nutrient that helps reduce the risk of neural tube defects during pregnancy.
  • Thanks to potassium, it helps lower blood pressure.

Carrot-Ginger Soup with Spicy Polenta Croutons

Recipes

Carrot-Ginger Soup with Spicy Polenta Croutons

What You Need:

For the Soup:

  • 1/2 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 cups organic carrots, peeled + chopped
  • Himalayan crystal salt, to taste
  • 2 cups organic vegetable stock
  • 1-2 cups filtered water, if needed
  • 1/3 cup sunflower seed butter
  • 2 tsp Sriracha sauce

For the Croutons:

  • 1 roll of polenta, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
  • dried Thai chiles – these are VERY hot, so use sparingly. You can always add more later if desired!
  • Cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, to lightly coat the polenta cubes (brush on or use a mister to use less)

To Make the Croutons:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  3. In a medium mixing bowl- coat the polenta cubes with olive oil + sprinkle them with Himalayan crystal salt + the ground up dried Thai chiles. Lightly toss.
  4. Place the polenta on top of the baking sheet + bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

To Make the Soup:

  1. In a stock pot, heat a bit of olive oil for 30 seconds. Toss in the onion, garlic, + carrots and heat until lightly tender. Sprinkle some salt + pepper on top.
  2. Stir in the vegetable stock + water (use your judgment on how thick you want the soup…less water = thicker.) Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, + simmer for roughly 15-20 minutes. Set aside to cool.
  3. Once cool, blend the soup in a high-powered blender (you may have to do it in 2 shifts…remember, hot liquid is like a volcano in a blender, so leave some space up top to avoid an explosion!)  Place it all in a large bowl + add the sunflower seed butter and Sriracha sauce in- stir well. More Sriracha can be added if you want a spicier soup…use ALL you want.
  4. When serving, top with cilantro + 4-5 polenta croutons!

Enjoy!

XOXO,

Ashley