Butternut Squash Apple Soup

Winter Flavors!

Butternut Squash Apple Soup Recipe

Note that the smaller you chop your vegetables, the faster they will cook. We like to finely dice the onion. celery and carrot, and cut the squash and apple into 1/2-inch chunks. For a variation add a couple dashes of smoked paprika and/or swirl in a little sour cream at the end (off the heat).

Ingredients

• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1 rib of celery, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, chopped
• 1 tart green apple, peeled, cored, chopped (squash and apple should be at a 3 to 1 ratio)
• 3 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth if vegetarian)*
• 1 cup water
• Pinches of nutmeg, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and pepper

Method

1 Set a large saucepan over medium-high heat and heat the butter for 1-2 minutes. Do not let it turn brown. Add the onion, celery and carrot and sauté for 5 minutes, taking care to turn the heat down if the vegetables begin to brown.
2 Add squash, apple, broth and water. Bring to boil. Cover, turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until squash and carrots soften. Puree, and return to a clean pot.
3 Add salt and spices to taste, and garnish with chives or parsley.

Gingersnaps!

My friends must know I'm a snacker (there's that word again) because they send me the BEST recipes ever for my condition!!! Thank you Christina!!! These are also good for those who get queasy while their husbands drive the car on curvy roads :). Just sayin'....

Gingersnaps

Ingredients

Cinnamon sugar

• 2 tbsp xylitol (use organic sugar when not on the detox)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

Dry

• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 2/3 cup blanched almond flour
• 1/3 cup arrowroot powder
• 1 tbsp whole flax seed
• 1 tbsp freshly ground flax seed
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp gluten-free baking soda
• 1/4 tsp Himalayan rock salt (sea salt will totally work fine)

Wet

• 3 tbsp agave nectar (use molasses when not on the detox)
• 1.5 tbsp water
• 1/2 cup xylitol (again, use organic sugar when not on the detox)
• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil
• 2 tbsp canned pumpkin – just pumpkin, not the pie filling

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Set aside.
2. Combine cinnamon sugar ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Place dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and combine with a fork. Set aside
4. Combine all wet ingredients in a large bowl with a hand mixer until fully incorporated.
5. Pour dry into wet while the hand mixer is running. Mix for no more than 30 seconds, just until all ingredients are nicely combined.
6. Scoop 1.5 tablespoons at a time and roll into balls with your hands – dough will be sticky, don’t worry.
7. Roll balls in cinnamon sugar and place on prepared sheet.
8. Bake for 15 minutes. The longer you cook, the crispier they will be. I like mine a little chewy, so I took them out at 15 minutes. Some like their gingersnaps snappy, so you can cook that batch for 20 minutes juuust for them.

Maple, Turnip, and Carrot Mash

These is a yummy sweet veggie dish, very good around this time of year!

Maple, Turnip and Carrot Mash

Yield: 6 cups

Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 3 medium raw turnips, chopped
• 4 cups carrots, chopped
• 2 tbsp agave nectar 
• 2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil

Directions

1. Place chopped turnips and carrots in a large saucepan. Fill with water and bring to a boil with the lid on.
2. Boil for 20 minutes, or until vegetables pierced with a fork are soft.
3. Drain, return back to saucepan and add maple syrup and coconut oil.
4. Serve with a protein .

Wanna Be Brownies

These are technically called Chocolate Jam-Packed Protein Cakes that Christina submitted to me, but after enjoying these, I think they should be called Wanna Be Brownies. It's probably as close as you're gonna get while on the detox :). Delicious!

3 Tbls Chocolate Protein Powder

1/4 cup egg whites

1 tbsp unsweetened apple sauce

10 drops liquid stevia or 1/2 tbsp agave or other sweetener

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix until fully incorporated.
3. Drop mixture into a 1 cup oven safe ramekin. 
4. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Almond Crackers

A reader emailed this recipe to me and I am SO grateful! I am a big time snacker (if that's even a word...) so these will really come in handy :)

Almond Crackers
1 cup almond flour (for extra fiber, grind whole almonds in a coffee grinder)
1 egg white
onion powder, garlic powder, and salt to taste

Mix everything in a bowl till it forms a ball. Place ball on greased cookie sheet. Top with a greased sheet of plastic wrap and roll to 1/8 inch thick. Sprinkle with salt, if desired. Use a pizza cutter to cut to cracker size. Bake at 325 for ten minutes. (watch the crackers at the edges. If they brown, remove them and continue baking the rest)