Cleansing Green Pea Soup

This is a fabulous soup recipe for whenever you're looking to cleanse and get lighter without losing muscle mass. Green peas provide plenty of protein to nourish your muscles, while spinach, lettuce, watercress, and parsley infuse your cells with a wide spectrum of minerals and vitamins.

Makes about 6 regular servings

Ingredients:

1 head green or red leaf lettuce
10 ounces spinach
1/2 bunch watercress leaves
1/4 cup parsley or cilantro leaves
1/4 cup minced fresh dill
2 large leeks - only the white and pale green portions, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 16-ounce bag frozen green peas, thawed, plus 1.5 to 2 cups frozen
green peas, thawed, on reserve
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
32 ounces vegetable broth
Juice of 1 lemon
Sea salt and pepper
One avocado to use as a garnish

Directions:

1. Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add leeks and saute until translucent. Add garlic and continue to saute until leeks are tender and just starting to lightly brown.

2. Add vegetable broth and bring to a mild boil. Add 16-ounce bag of green peas and return to a gentle simmer. Add spinach and lettuce and cook just until they are wilted, then remove from heat.

3. Stir in watercress, parsley, half of the dill, and lemon juice. Transfer to a food processor or strong blender and puree in batches, then return to the pot. Or use an immersion hand-held blender in the pot and puree until soup is smooth.

4. If you prefer a lighter consistency, add more vegetable broth, then puree again.

5. Stir in reserved peas and dill. Heat until it's as hot as you would like to serve. Season with sea salt and pepper and garnish with fresh avocado slices just before serving.

Inspired by a similar recipe by Nava Atlas in Wild About Greens

For a printer-friendly version of this recipe without photos, please view:

Green Peas with Avocado Soup Recipe