Spicy cream of Butternut Soup

1 medium Butternut Squash, peeled and chopped
1 large red onion, peeled and chopped
1 large carrot, washed, topped and tailed and chopped
1 tsp coconut oil
1-2 tablespoons ground corriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp celery salt
pinch ground cayenne ( more if you want heat)
2 cups veg stock ( I use a vegetable bullion/sock cube and boiling water as I don't like the taste of the carton stocks)
1 tin lite coconut milk
Half tin creamy coconut milk (the rest can be put in a container in the fridge for a couple of days)

Melt the coconut oil over low heat, add onion and start to soften, add carrot and squash.  increase heat to medium low and cook for a few minutes until onion is softened. Add spices and cook for  minute stirring. Add a little water if they begin to stick. Add stock and turn up heat. When the soup comes to a simmer add coconut milk stir well and  bring back to simmer. Cook for 40 minutes or until squash and carrot are tender.

Transfer all veg to a liquidizer add the half tin of creamy coconut milk and puree. Be really careful as this is hot and some liquidizers spurt.

Return the mix to the pan and stir to combine with the soup liquid. Season with lemon pepper.

If you are serving to guests you may want to use a little of the remaining coconut milk to make a swirl and garnish with a little cilantro/corriander leaves.

Alkaline Cleanse next steps

Well I completed 3 full days of the cleanse and felt great - I also last 3 kg weight.

Then Tues to Friday involved a lot of eating out, so all the meals I produced were vegan, gluten free and alkaline and I did my best at eating safe foods that were produced by others.

Yesterday I did pretty well and made a delicious butter-nut soup.

So today I am going back on the Alkaline Cleanse, I just need to decide if I go back to day 1 or start at day 4 or 5......

Alkaline Cleanse: Day 2 and 3 completed

Day 2 was interesting; I locked myself out of my apartment as I left to go to church. Fortunately I had my morning smoothie with me, because it was about 2:30 before I got back in.

This means all the time plan of the cleanse was thrown out. I managed to keep to the various menu items apart from deciding to add another bowl of the pea and mint soup as by the time I ate I was ravenous, I also ate both servings of the supper soup.

So I didn't actually lose any weight when I weighed myself this morning.

However, I have had two of the best night's sleep I have had for weeks and my energy levels and mood are are also the best I've had for months, so I am very happy.

Day 3, another interesting day, back at work so seeing how this cleanse would fit in. It's actually been ok and when the food was brought out for the dedication of our new Children's Centre I ate only veg that is included in the cleanse. So I felt very self-satisfied having forgone carrot cake which is one of my absolute favourites.

Tomorrow and Wed I am on a working retreat and have made arrangements for vegan, gluten-free meals, so even though I won't be on the cleanse I will be eating foods in line with it.

The plan is to resume the cleanse on Thursday - I'll see how that goes then.

Blessings
Debbie

Alkaline Cleanse: Day 1 Completed, welcome Day 2

Day 1 of the Alkaline Reset Cleanse was actually really good. I was not hungry, though I did get peckish at times. Thankfully there was always more of the smoothie to go to and I still have a bit left which I think is because I added all the pulp from the juice. So that with the additional water means I probably made more than Ross's recipe. I hate the idea of throwing out that good dietary fibre so I always add it to smoothies and soups later when I juice.

The most amazing meal was the soup for supper. Basically a raw pea and mint soup. It was so delicious. I admit I left the onion out as I had enough raw onion in the lunch soup for the day. I think though if I used a shallot or some spring onions another time that would be ok. Anyway it was so good, it will be on my recipe list from now on. It can be found on Ross's website at http://liveenergized.com/alkaline-recipes/alkaline-recipe-21-alkaline-springtime-soup/ 

I didn't have any of the usual cleanse side effects such as the detox headache either. Yay!

I weighed myself this morning and was really surprised to have lost 1.1 kg.

The reason I am surprised is because the sheer amount of veg I actually consumed is more than on the vegan diet I usually eat! There were 37 portions of vegetables and 2.5 avocados. This is an astounding amount of food, which of course I could not consume if it was not made into juices, smoothies and soups. Eating two and a half avocados in one day seems a lot especially when years ago I was told not to eat more than one a week as the fat content is so high. Of course the research has changed and now we know that the fat in them is really healthy and because it is contained in the whole fruit with all the fibre and other goodies our bodies digest it very differently than if you ate the same amount as processed oil or spreads.

So I am looking forward to what today holds.
Debbie

Alkaline Reset Cleanse

Well life has been hectic for so long that I feel I have let so many things go. My health is the biggest one! I have not eaten well- in the sense of healthy for the past year. I have spurts and spasms of eating vegan and gluten-free and then something happens I go somewhere and I think just a little won't hurt. Of course it does! My weight sky-rockets, my energy plummets and my mood goes on a downward spiral with brain fog and lethargy rising and the arthritis and other aches and pains increase.

So the Master of Divinity is finished & I have graduated.... YAY!

So now it is time to take charge of the health issues. So I am trying kick-starting it with going on the Alkaline Reset Cleanse. You can find out more at http://liveenergized.com/

I have been following Ross Bridgeford's blogs and articles, videos etc on the liveenergized web site for a long time and have been alkalising my water on and off for the past year. So I thought it was time to take the bull by the horns and actually do the full cleanse, which can be 3, 7 or 10 days. I am starting with 3 days, but plan to then do the 7 day starting a week from now.

Today is the first day and so far I have had a Energise Alkaline Green  Drink which is veg juice for breakfast and an Antioxidant  Green Smoothie mid morning. The recipes are on Ross's liveenergized site.

I am not hungry and feel good so far.

Plan is to put a bit on here each day so I have some accountability..... we will see how that goes.

Be blessed and don't give up.
Debbie