Post Detox Green Chicken Soup

Why yes, it does say "post detox" in the title. Which means yes, I actually did a cleanse. I know... I am as surprised as anyone!!! I had very little faith in myself going into this whole thing, but I actually made it through and I feel absolutely amazing! I started out doing a three day cleanse though Pressed Juices and loved it so much that I actually added two days and did a five day cleanse! I was definitely hungry at first, especially being around food non stop. Cooking and cleansing is tough to say the least, but it was totally worth it. 

This soup is perfect for coming off of a cleanse! Orrrr just because soup is delicious. It's super healthy, packed with immunity boosting greens and lean chicken breast. I made a huge batch of it so that it would be ready when I was done my cleanse and so that I would have extras to freeze for the next time I wake up with a sniffle in my nose.

POST-DETOX CHICKEN SOUP
Recipe from Chalkboardmag.com

Ingredients:

For the soup:

½ bunch kale (washed, stem removed and leaves shredded)
½ bunch swiss chard (washed and shred leaves only. Keep stems)
1/2 leek (mostly white part, washed very well and sliced into strips)
2 cups green cabbage (shredded)
2 stalks of celery (washed and slivered)
6 cups fortified chicken stock (regular chicken stock, reduced to ½ its volume)
couple minced cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste

To simmer the chicken:
2 chicken breast (bone-in for more flavor)
2 carrots (peeled and cut into thick slices)
2 stalk celery (washed and cut into big slices)
Swiss Chard (sliced stems)
½ cup leek (washed and sliced)
½ cup Spanish onion (cut into chunks)
cold water- to cover chicken and veg


Method:

For the Chicken:

Add all the ingredients in stockpot and cover with cold water. Start on high until it comes to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and let the chicken cook for 25 minutes.

Remove chicken from pot and chill until cool enough to handle with hands. Pull chicken into shreds. I saved the stock for the soup... I just reduced it by half so that it was much more flavorful.

For the Soup:

Place all the shredded greens and garlic into a separate pot. Cover with fortified chicken stock and cook at medium high heat, until it begins to boil (you won’t see it very well, as the greens will cover the broth). The greens will soon cook down and diminish in size. Let soup simmer slowly for 10 more minutes. Stir in shredded chicken breast and cook for 1 or 2 more minutes. Adjust seasoning. I like to keep it low in salt after co ming out of detox.

Juice: Day 4

Today I lived in my car and this juice was a perfect on the go snack in the coolest grown up sippy cups ever! (Thank you Cindy Kieth!)

Day 4:
1 apple
3 beets
3 large carrots
1-inch piece ginger

Happy Juicing!

Juice: Day 3

This weekend I learned two things:
1. There are things to drink that are more fun than juice.
2. Juice makes my body feel better on Monday morning.

Happy juicing!

Day 3:
2 cups blueberries
2 kiwifruit, peeled
16 strawberries
2 cups mint leaves

Juice: Day 2

Holy Moly this one is yummy!


Day 2: 
1/4 pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into pieces
1 cup blackberries
1 kiwifruit, peeled
1 pear
30 fresh mint leaves
2 cups blueberries

30 Days of Juicing... Starts NOW!

Say what?

Now, before you get your panties all in a bunch.... I am NOT in any way, shape, or form even hinting at a juice cleanse. Have you met me? I would rather die. And juice cleanses CAN kill you. Buttttttt, seeing as I have decided that it is fall now (have you heard?) and I was less than kind to my body this summer, I thought maybe a little nutrition and T.L.C. might be nice. This is not a cleanse, a weight loss plan, or anything of the sort (yuck!) it is simply a way to try some new juices that are vitamin and nutrient dense! Plus, these juices sound seriously delicious.

You see, I was perusing Williams Sonoma earlier, as I do, and came across their plan for 30 days of juicing. I am not an idiot, I know that it was a ploy to sell me a juicer that I already have, but that made it all the easier to avoid the sales pitch (though I have been begging Richard for a Vitamix since forever and if Santa ends up bringing me one instead I may go back up the chimney with that sexy silver fox.) But rather than worry about that, I have begun obsessing over a new plan that I will most likely fail at. I am not very good at committing to things (Rich cover your ears), but, again, considering what I put my liver through over the past few months, I thought that this was a very good idea. And for the record, I make no promises some Kettle One won't find its way into one of these juices. After all, my liver has come to expect a certain workload and I wouldn't want it to think it has let me down.

So, here I am. I am going to blog EVERY DAY with a new juice recipe. I am serious. It's happening. You are welcome to join us... Richard and I, that is. I am not sure if he is as motivated as me, but as my husband he is well versed in that all too true idiom, "happy wife, happy life..." so he really doesn't have a choice. He did, roughly a year ago, but he chose me, and now WE chose juice. (See what I did there?)

Here it is. Day 1:

Day 1:  2 pints blueberries 2 pints blackberries Seeds of 3 pomegranates

Believe it or not.... it was delicious.