The Ultimate Healing Greens Soup

I swear by this soup to the depths of my being. I’m not positive why it works, although surely a scientist, nutritionist, and wizard could tell us why. I just know it WORKS. Anytime I feel a bit of yuck coming on – from a summer cold to something more serious – I swear this soup allays it. This is one of those self-made recipes I’ll pass on for generations. It’s that effective. This isn’t a soup to serve guests for a Sunday lunch, it’s a soup to cleanse and heal your entire being. I make sure to ALWAYS have all these ingredients in my house in case a cold percolates or I’m feeling feh. I’ve even started to crave it occasionally, which is how I know my body needs it. In the words of one of my son’s favorite kids books “Chicken soup?! More like chicken poop!” Chicken soup’s main healing is visa the hot liquids which are soothing, why not elevate the recipe and switch from dead birds to clean plants! Here’s me making it on Instagram.

Let’s get started:

RECIPE

Chopped greens – piles of them in a huge pot. Include any/ all of the following: kale, collards, dandelion greens, bok choy, spinach, chard, watercress, fresh herbs like dill or parsley, etc. Rudely chop, toss in pot. The greens should nearly hit the top of a large soup pan because they cook down so small.
Drizzle of olive oil
Two entire heads of garlic, if you can take it. If not, one. Chopped.
One onion (any kind) chopped
Fresh ginger, grated or chopped
Fresh turmeric, grated or chopped (if you only have powdered, that’s fine – toss in two tablespoons)
Solid squeeze of Braggs Amino Acids or a few tablespoons of Himalayan sea salt
Tablespoon of cayenne pepper or dash of hot sauce or black pepper if that’s what you have
Water to cover the ingredients, or veggie or miso broth/ broth paste or cubes if you have them. Broth definitely makes this all more flavorful.
OPTIONAL: Chopped cauliflower, scallions, shitake/ mushrooms, leeks, celery, two scoops of nutritional yeast, strips of kombu. All these things make the soup yummier, and healthier – BUT the main things you need for the epic healing are the greens, the garlic and onion, and the ginger! If you find you need it to be heartier, you can toss in a handful of lentils or quinoa, but the point is to not overload your system with things to process, so I generally avoid putting heavy carbs in this like potatoes, rice, or other grains.

Let it all boil and then simmer for an hour. You can eat it as is, or puree it. Drink/ eat as much as you can tolerate. It should be slightly spicy, and make you sweat. You’ll smell, and maybe fart. But you will feel better by the next day!

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