A Detox Soup That Won't Remind You of the Cabbage Soup Diet

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Photo credit: Angela Liddon

The cabbage soup diet isn’t the original crash diet—that distinction goes to William the Conquerer, who, too heavy for his horse, resorted to an all-liquor “cleanse” in 1087—but it is one of the most famous. And surely the most malodorous. Eat as much cabbage soup as you like, along with random foods in pairings that defy logic, for seven days. You will be a slip of a thing in a week! You’ll also be starving, the worst sort of meal companion, and a verifiable grump.

Enter a fresh, modern update for days when you just feel, shall we say, a little more puffy than usual. This soup is the kitchen work of Angela Liddon, the blogger behind Oh She Glows and author of the forthcoming cookbook of the same name. It’s a bit of a miracle worker, and one that Liddon told us she likes to eat after a period of over-indulgence.

"[After a bowl] I always feel more balanced, healthy, and energized." It’s brimming with every culinary cure-all under the sun—garlic, mushrooms, ginger, turmeric, and kale—then dressed with a squeeze of lemon and a smattering of nori. (Thrill-seekers might like to shake a bit of cayenne on there, too).

After a winter weekend of bloody marys and bottomless bowls of ragu, this is just what the doctor ordered.

Eat Your Greens Detox Soup
from The Oh She Glows Cookbook
Serves 3

1 1/2 teaspoons coconut oil or olive oil
1 sweet onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups sliced cremini or white button mushrooms (about 8 ounces)
1 cup chopped carrots
2 cups chopped broccoli florets
Fine-grain sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 to 3 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 cups vegetable broth
2 large nori seaweed sheets, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) strips (optional)
2 cups (500 mL) torn kale leaves
Fresh lemon juice, for serving (optional)

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.

Add the mushrooms, carrots, and broccoli and stir to combine. Season generously with salt and pepper and sauté for 5 minutes more.

Stir in the ginger, turmeric, cumin, and cinnamon and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant.

Add the broth and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 10 to 20 minutes.

Just before serving, stir in the nori (if using) and kale and cook until wilted. Season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, if desired.

Reprinted by arrangement with AVERY, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, A Penguin Random House Company. Copyright © GLO BAKERY CORPORATION, 2014.

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