It is winter and we are all craving our carbs and comfort foods. While Hypoxi does most of the hard work for you, trying to make sure your meals are on the low side of carb can be difficult when the weather outside is telling you to eat for convenience and warmth, rather than for fuel and proper nourishment.
This is where soups become the savior of any challenged healthy foodie!
Soups are simple, made in minutes and can be a great way of ridding yourself of whatever veggies are lying at the bottom of the drawer.
In order to truly satisfy, soups need to be creamy, hearty and filled with non starchy carbs to keep hunger at bay. While pumpkin is considered high carb, its nutritional profile actually begs to differ. 1 cup only contains 7.5 grams of carbs and with this soup containing but a small portion of pumpkin; you can sip the success of your kitchen pursuits without worrying about jeopardising your goals.
Broccoli, Pumpkin and Leek Soup
Ingredients:
- Olive oil spray
- 1 leek, pale section only, halved lengthways, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- ¼ piece of Jap Pumpkin (or your favourite)
- 1L (4 cups) water
- 1 salt-reduced vegetable stock cube, crumbled
- 600g broccoli, cut into florets
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
Method
- Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Spray with olive oil spray. Add the leek. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or until aromatic.
- Add the pumpkin, water and stock cube to the leek mixture. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the broccoli. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the broccoli is tender. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Place the broccoli mixture, parsley and basil in the jug of a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer the soup to a clean saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until heated through.
- Make sure you top with a good solid protein. Boiled eggs, poached chicken breast, or turkey mince crumbled throughout are some great options.
