Creamy Asparagus Soup

                                        

During December I tried my hand at the Whole 30 diet. For those of you who haven't heard of it it's similar to the Paleo diet - no grains, no legumes, no dairy, no alcohol, no sugar or sweeteners for 30 days.  Its a bit of a fad right now and I'm normally opposed to fads but when I read about it I decided it could help reset my eating habits and get me through the holidays without eating all the treats. It wasn't easy but I completed it and it gave me a new perspective on how I eat. My biggest realization was how much I love sugar. I love it in my hazelnut coffee creamer, in my piece of dark chocolate I have after the girls are asleep - I pretty much love it more than I ever realized. 

Coming out of the whole 30 I decided to treat myself to Yum Universe by Heather Crosby. Its a new cookbook that promotes a 'gluten-free, plant-powerful, whole-food lifestyle'. I loved how good I felt during the whole 30 and want to keep it up but add back in more whole grains. I don't normally use recipes or love cook books but this one gave me so much inspiration I've made almost every recipe in it. 

I'm really looking forward to the market opening next week and have been craving some fresh asparagus even though its still a little early for it.  I found this recipe for creamy asparagus soup on YumUniverse.com. I made it for lunch yesterday and was surprised at how easy and delicious it is for being dairy free. The only real prep is soaking the cashews for 4 hours but other than that it came together really quickly and even my 4 year old approved. I like the lime and thyme together - it tasted super fresh and perfect for early spring. 

Creamy Asparagus Soup

Tools:

Large stock pot

Blender

Ingredients:

1 yellow onion, diced

1 bunch asparagus (about 25-30 stalks)

1 tbsp unrefined virgin coconut oil

1 tsp fresh thyme, roughly chopped

2 tsp fresh lime juice

1/4 cup cashews, soaked for 4 hours

4 cups pure water

salt to taste

Wash asparagus well.

If you are serving to others and need a garnish, trim 2″ of asparagus tops for as many garnishes as you’ll need and set aside.

Slice up the rest of the asparagus into tiny pieces.

Place coconut oil and onion in large stock pot and heat over medium-high for 7 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Add asparagus (not your garnish) and cook together for 2-3 minutes.

Prepare thyme leaves.

                                                

Add to stock pot and stir. Add water to stockpot and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Place garnish in your hot soup to blanch for 1 minute and remove—set aside. Tongs are great for this.

Transfer soup to blender, add lime juice, salt and cashews —purée until ultra smooth.

Serve hot with fresh cracked pepper and a sprig of blanched asparagus tip.

Also delicious chilled.

Enjoy!

Check out YumUniverse.com for more awesome recipes. 

Stay Sweet,

Alisa