I spent two successful months on the State of Slim this summer. Lost 20 pounds, felt better in my skin and in my clothes, and then life happened. Stress increased, socializing increased, and slowly I fell away from the plan. And re-entered some of my old disordered eating behavior: pairing periods of indulgence with periods of withholding intake.
But I learned some things from 6 months of eating disorder therapy, one of which is that self-neglect is a deeply entrenched behavior born of deep self-loathing. And I’ve set a boundary that I don’t neglect my own needs any more—and that includes my need to fuel my body when it’s hungry.
As I turned in to myself with the intent to love and provide care, I realized that I was struggling to stay on-plan because I was depleted. Two months of very strict dieting paired with multiple sources of deep heartache AND the work involved to get both of my business back on track post-pandemic . . . I was exhausted. Those cravings were a cry from my body for deep nourishment. So I created this soup with the intention feed myself—and craved it all week long until it was gone and I made a second batch.
Roasted Vegetable Soup
This recipe is more of a concept than an actual recipe—open to many interpretations and possibilities. It is soup. Feel free to add anything you have on hand!
Preheat oven to 475*
Dice a large variety of different vegetables—enough to substantially fill a large baking sheet. In this batch, I used:
a small red kuri squash
a handful of Brussels sprouts
the kernels from one ear of corn
a diced carrot
a diced jalapeno pepper
two diced bell peppers
sliced button mushrooms
1/4 head cauliflower.
Toss with high-heat appropriate oil (I used 1/2T avocado oil mixed with 3T water to minimize the amount of fat in the soup) and copious amounts of dried rosemary. Roast on a baking sheet in the preheated oven until beginning to brown on top, around 20 minutes.
In the meantime, in a large soup pot, I sauteed:
2 small onions
several stalks of celery
the diced stems from some swiss chard
6 or so diced roasted green chilis.
Once they were soft, I added
two boxes of chicken broth (keep an eye on those ingredients—stocks and broths often contain added sugars, which you may not want!)
the leaves of the aforementioned swiss chard
some kale and sliced cabbage I had left over from other dishes
some sliced snow peas left over from the previous night’s dinner.
Once the roasted vegetables were beginning to brown, I added them to the pot, along with salt to taste, a hearty pinch of dried thyme, and some fresh sage from the garden. I brought the pot to a low simmer, long enough to wilt the greens, and, BOOM, dinner’s ready!
Serving Suggesions:
For weekday lunches, I pair a small bowl/thermos of soup with a serving of lean protein (often grilled chicken breast). I believe this is a State of Slim Phase II compliant meal depending on the vegetables that you choose.
I LOVE this soup in the morning with a diced boiled egg or two on top.
For my kids for Sunday’s movie night dinner, we added some cooked tortellini and a sliced grilled ring of fresh Polish sausage from Bavarian Sausage Express.