The most over-used word at this time of year has to be "detox". Firstly it's important to say that your liver and kidneys to a fine job of ridding your body of toxin. A punishing, hunger inducing regimen of foods designed to detox your system will probably not improve how your liver and kidneys function.
However there is a benefit to upping your intake of vegetables, cooking as much as you can from scratch and significantly reducing how much of obvious nasties such as alcohol, sugar and bad fats we consume.
One clever way to do this is by making soup at home. Soup can be nourishing and warming - perfect to combat December's excesses and, by using good ingredients, a great way to kick start a healthier approach to eating.
There are some great ready made soups in supermarkets these days but home made is better. There is a lot of evidence that soup fills you up for longer so this definitely a great option if you want to lose some weight. A good home made soup will provide an excellent source of fiber, vitamins, and nutrients.
Look out for some great soup recipes over the coming week. Here's one of my favourites to start.
Curried Butternut Squash Soup
I butternut squash
2 tsp curry powder
1 Veg stock pot
Boiling water
Cut the squash into large chunks anddiscard the seeds
Placed the squash chunks in a roasting pan and place in an oven which has already been preheated to 180C
Roast for 30 mins
Remove from oven and leave to cool
Peel skin from roasted squash chunks
Place peeled, roasted squash in a saucepan
Add veg stock pot, curry powder and enough boiling water to cover everything
Bring to boiling and then simmer for about 20 mins
Leave to cool and then blend in a food processor or blender
Add sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Store in fridge and heat as needed. This will keep in fridge for 5 days.
