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Think You Don’t Have Time to Cook Dinner?

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC

Think You Don’t Have Time to Cook Dinner? | The Organic Beauty Blog

I get it: You’re tired. You had a long day. The last thing you want to do after work is slave away in the kitchen.

So you go out and eat a big, calorie bomb of a meal, or you order takeout Thai food, binge-eat frozen pizza or chips and salsa, or worse yet, sup on some packaged, processed crap you found in the back of your pantry.  Or if you do cook, you’re so starving and stressed that you resort to fatty comfort foods to help yourself feel better.

Yes, my friends, this is definitely getting in your way of being in your ideal body, waking up with tons of energy, and looking and feeling your absolute best.

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Soups: Your Quick and Easy Dinner Solution

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC

Soups Your Quick and Easy Dinner Solution | The Organic Beauty Blog

A light, delicious, vegetable-based soup makes the perfect dinner for encouraging healthy weight, quality sleep, improved digestion, and increased energy in the mornings.  Soups are easily digestible, which leaves your body primed for rest, detoxification, and rejuvenation while you sleep, instead of expending tons of energy on digesting a big meal full of slow-to-digest foods like animal protein and grains.  Plus, it is super easy to throw together a delicious, quick dinnertime soup that leaves you free to relax and enjoy your evening, without spending hours in the kitchen!  Cook a big pot for the week, and enjoy your freedom!

 

A super important trick for quick and easy soups is a good quality vegetable broth base.  My absolute favorite for a flavorful, delicious broth is Seitenbacher Vegetable Broth Powder.  It’s all natural, instant, and allows you to customize how strongly flavored you want your broth.  I use it for all of my soups!  Pacific Organics and Imagine Organics make ok ones too, but in my opinion, nothing beats the natural broth powder!

Your other tools for whipping up a dinner soup in no time at all are canned veggies.  Stock up your pantry with canned organic beans and canned organic tomatoes.  Other pantry staples include yellow onions, garlic, greens, and olive oil.

Check out our delicious quick and easy dinner soup recipes!

Quick Vegan Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

Quick White Bean and Kale Soup

Raw Summer Gazpacho

Chilled Cucumber Soup with Mint

Any Root Vegetable Soup

Acorn Squash & Apple Soup

Split Pea, Fennel & Spinach Soup

Thai Sweet Potato Soup

 

Quick Raw Summer Gazpacho

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC

This delicious raw gazpacho is an amazingly detoxifying dinner for a hot summer night.  The garlic, onion, and jalapeño add some bite, while the fennel and bell peppers bring out even more sweetness from the fresh tomatoes.

Quick Raw Gazpacho

Serves 4

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

4 large tomatoes, cut into chunks

2 yellow bell peppers, cut into chunks

1 red onion, chopped

2 stalks of fennel (not the bulb), with leaves, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 jalapeno pepper (optional)

3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1/4 cup raw apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup water, low-sodium vegetable stock, or water with 1-2 tbsp of Seitenbacher vegetable broth powder

Sea salt to taste

Directions:

Blend or food process all the ingredients, add a little water if you need it for consistency.  Garnish with basil or cilantro.  Serve chilled.

Quick White Bean and Kale Soup

By: Natasha Uspensky, CHHC

This quick and delicious soup makes for a hearty and healthy dinner.  A rainbow of colors tells you you’re getting tons of yummy vitamins, and the beans mean everyone will feel full and satisfied from a vegetable protein that won’t weigh you down!

Quick White Bean and Kale Soup

Serves 4

Cooking time: 30 min

Ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

4 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 (32 oz) carton of low-sodium organic vegetable broth, or 4 cups of water seasoned with Seitenbacher broth powder

4 cups packed chopped kale

2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds

1 (14.5 oz) can of organic, unsalted cannelini beans

1 (14.5 oz) can of organic diced tomatoes

Directions:

Heat oil over medium heat in a soup pot.  Add onion and cook 3 minutes.  Add garlic and cook another two minutes.  Add carrots and cook another minute.  Add broth, tomatoes and their juice and bring to a boil.  Cook about 5 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Add beans and kale and cook until kale is tender, about another 5-7 minutes. Season with freshly ground pepper to taste.  Serve with rye or multigrain toast.