this is a story of how i made it through a long, exhausting day, with FOOD. not caffeine, not sugar, but healthy, energizing, whole foods.
it was a cold november morning. i woke up knowing i had double the amount of students to teach, and was tired and sore from yesterday’s workout. i wasn’t feeling well and i had lots to cram into my day. i wanted to conquer! but the day seemed daunting.
before i could get both eyes open, i reached for my phone and googled, “healing soups for energy”. i found some amazing stuff, but focused on one awesome soup that promotes gut health.
a healthy gut can cure, or help ease the symptoms of A LOT of common ailments: hormonal issues, chronic fatigue, anxiety, depression, you name it.
and the best way to create a healthy gut? an alkaline diet. that’s a diet with lots of vitamin c, e and a, zinc, omega 3’s, and coconut oil.
so i decided to try this soup i found online that has all those ingredients and more!
and of course, i tweaked the recipe to make it my own.
it’s simmering on the stove right now, and i am energized just smelling it.
1 large handful of spinach or kale (or any dark leafy green)
1 cup almond milk
handful of raw cashews
1 avocado
directions:
in a large dutch oven or stock pot, cook your lentils in water. this should take about 20 minutes, and you can just follow the directions on the dry lentils bag.
meanwhile, roughly chop the sweet potatoes, carrots, bell pepper, garlic, and onion.
after your lentils are done and you’ve put those in a strainer to drain, add the coconut oil to the pan and drop in your onions first. after they begin to brown, add the rest of the veggies and let them soften for a few minutes. don’t cook them too long ~ you want as many nutrients as possible. 5 minutes max!
add the veggie stock and bring to a boil.
bring the soup down to a simmer and add your lentils, herbs, spices and dark leafy greens and let simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
let the soup cool and add the almond milk. blend until smooth.
top with cashews and avocado.
ladle this soup into individual containers and freeze (minus the avocado ~ the cashews can survive the freezer a little better).
you can have a gut healing soup every day in just minutes!
