eat your vegetables

Something about dreary weather calls for soups and stews…

Yes, indeed. And something about a saturday morning farmers market calls for a big stew full of fresh, flavorful vegetables.

Beans and brown rice? Nope.

Nuts and seeds? No more…

Vegetables? Check!

Flipping through some of my old, trusty cookbooks led me to this recipe for Ratatouille, a classic French stew that combines eggplant, peppers, onions, squash and tomatoes. Typically, it’s paired with chicken or fish and served as a side.

I find it perfectly good on its own.

Ratatouille (from the Rodale Whole Foods Cookbook) – Good on all days

Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, halved and chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small eggplant, cubed

2 medium green peppers, chopped

4 large tomatoes, coarsely chopped

3 zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (I used yellow squash)

2 tablespoons chopped parsely

1 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon thyme

salt

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally until onions are soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Add eggplant, tomatoes and spices; cook covered, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes.

Season with salt. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Garnish with parsley before serving.

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black bean minestrone

I don’t know about ya’ll, but I freeze anything and everything.

That includes soups. So…with two days left before detox, why not make this delicious soup ahead of time and freeze it?

The hardest part of making this soup was chopping and slicing all the veggies. You can totally do this the day before you decide to make it and save a bunch of time.

Black Bean Minestrone (from 12 Best Foods Cookbook) – Good on Days 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10

Serves 6

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium carrot, thinly sliced

1 rib celery, thinly sliced

1 medium leek, white part only; halved and sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 clove garlic; minced

4 cups fat-free, reduced sodium vegetable broth

3 cups coarsely chopped Swiss chard leaves

6 plum tomatoes, seeded and drained

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 can black beans, drained

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Grated cheese (on day 1 only)

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detox-friendly babaganoush soup

For all the babaganoush fans out there…this ones for you.

With detox coming up in less than 1 1/2 weeks, I have found a soup for you to make that is pure deliciousness. Trust me on this one- you won’t regret making it. One of the most challenging parts of detox is the blandness of foods.

Well, friends, I have the solution.

I will live on this soup next week during detox. You should too.

Here’s how…

Babaganoush Soup  (Good on Days 1, 2, 3, 9, 10)

Serves 3

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant

1 red bell pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 red onion, chopped

2 T olive oil

2 1/2 cups vegetable stock

1/4 cup tahini

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 lemon

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Slice your eggplant (don’t peel) and lay slices on a sheet tray lined with tin foil. Press paper towels on top of your eggplant slices and let sit for 20 minutes. When done, remove paper towels and dice eggplant. Spray foil with cooking spray and place eggplant back on. Chop bell pepper and put on sheet tray with eggplant. Add a couple teaspoons of olive oil and stir around. Sprinkle generously with salt and roast for 25 minutes, tossing occasionally.

Heat the olive oil over medium high heat then add the chopped red onion. Saute for five minutes until soft then add the garlic. Saute for 30 more seconds.

Add the stock, roasted diced eggplant and red bell pepper. Stir in the spices and tahini. Bring to a simmer then carefully transfer soup to blender. Process until smooth.

Ladle soup into bowls and finish with a squeeze of lemon.

Time:
1 hour

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