Green Detox Soup

Hi, friends!  Sorry that I have been away from the blog.  These past few weeks have been crazy, busy, and GREAT!  I changed jobs, visited California, and just adopted another golden retriever.  It has been an exciting spring!

"Doga"

Though it is spring, Colorado is still getting some winter weather, but the warm, sunny days will be back soon.  (Did you know that Denver gets 300 days of sunshine?)

Spring--or spring disguised as winter--always feels like a good time to detox, so I decided to try a reboot, inspired by Joe Cross.  During a reboot, you drink and eat only fruits and vegetables, herbal teas, and water.  In doing so, you recharge your body and increase your energy levels.  As some of you know, I love juicing because it gives me more energy!  Juicing makes fruits and vegetables easy to digest, and energy spent on digestion can then be spent on more important things, like getting used to walking two golden retrievers. ;)

I kind of went crazy getting fruits and veggies!

With the "reboot," you spend the first five days eating and juicing fruits and vegetables, the next five days juicing fruits and vegetables, and the final five days eating and juicing fruits and vegetables.  The first two days were the hardest because of caffeine withdrawal related headaches.  ;)  Since then, I have felt fantastic.  Those spring allergies are now gone.  Over the next week or so, I'll be sharing some of the good eats and drinks from my reboot.

This soup is as green as it gets!  It is full of so many vegetables and good stuff like iron, calcium, folic acid, beta-carotene, and vitamin K.  (Take that, gummy bear vitamin.)  It tastes fresh, and the combination of veggies creates a great flavor.

Veg it up with this green detox soup.


Green Detox Soup
Yields 6-8 servings

Ingredients:
1 leek, thinly sliced
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 cups vegetable broth
2 cups broccoli, trimmed to small florets
8 kale leaves, torn
2 zucchini, sliced
3 celery stalks, diced
6 asparagus stalks
1/2 cup parsley or basil
2 green onions, sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
In a large stock pot or French oven, heat the extra virgin olive oil over medium heat.  Add the sliced leek and minced garlic, and sauté for about three minutes until you begin to smell a light garlic-onion aroma.  Then, add the vegetable stock and the vegetables (broccoli, kale, zucchini, celery, and asparagus).  Slowly bring to a boil, and stir occasionally.  Cook until the zucchini is salt.

Add salt and pepper to taste.  To process the soup, use an immersion blender.  Alternatively, you can transfer it to a blender or a food processor.  Garnish with parsley and sliced green onions, and enjoy!

Source: Adapted with modifications from Reboot with Joe