Roasted Carrot Soup 

You know how the post holiday season rolls around and everyone’s all cray into their New Year’s cleanse?

Or they have that looooooong list of goals, handwritten with their fitbit shining, while they book out their gym time and guzzle water?

Gleaming with the potential that this new year holds. With the best intentions to be better. Healthier, namely. And get their act together, once and for all.

Now you might think that this might make me mad to witness.  Or sad.

That my more steady and consistent “healthy lifestyle” way of eating isn’t what people go to first. It’s human nature to want to go with the BIG claim -drastic-crazy-OMG results.

The new year actually makes me so happy– that when given time to reflect on how people have treated their bodies in the last year, most people have an intention to do better.

They have the realization that they deserve more. Out of their food, out of their work, their relationships and their life. They’re sick of feeling sub par in any of those categories. The zest is there. 

It’s a beautiful time. A special time.

And true- it’s also the time that people get all extreme again.

You know- because now they have just  a little more willpower than last year. A little more control. A little more dedication.

THEN, they can be healthy. THIS IS THE YEAR! You’re gonna do it this time.

The truth is actually nothing like it. Can I just get real here, for a second?

The problem is that you just can’t live life in those extremes. In that perfection that you’re probably envisioning now. Unless you’re willing to give up most of your life to make it happen.

Trust me, I’ve tried.

There will always be something that comes up that you’ll want to participate in. It’s usually really fun. And something you don’t want to miss out on.

So then, you say, screw it! carpe diem and things like but I only live once, and then the party person inside you comes out and loves life and goes fully into “living” it. Being free. Feeling happy. Letting loose. 

And then, the next morning, the dang it, why did I do that?! shame spiral. Which somehow tells you to just keeping the party train rolling, because-hey, you already messed up the day so you might as well enjoy it. Or the weekend. Or the week. Or the month.

So this year, can I help you out?

I LOVE your resolutions. To cook more at home, to learn more about real food, to be healthier and have more energy and more love to give to others. Because you (and everyone around you) deserves the fullest life.

But let’s try a new route to get there: do something this year that will actually TEACH you how to make this “healthy thing” work in real life. So that you grow. You learn. And you leave the vicious up and down cycle with your healthy eating behind. 

Without the extremes.

This year, what if you vowed to learn how to make good food easy enough, so that you don’t get overwhelmed. And how to be always be ready to make healthy meals (because that is always the starting point- in your own kitchen), anytime of the year, not just these first 2 months.

It’s an art. It’s a practice. But once you actually LEARN how to do it, life changes. You get outside of your comfort zone. You try new things. You’re not just following a stiff plan that leaves you feeling unsure and lost when it comes to an end. You now understand the why.

And how to make it work when things aren’t so black and white. Because life is not.

So this year. My wish for you is that you do something that will change you. How you cook, how you shop, how you order out, and how you think. And make it fun for sheesh sake, so you’ll want to keep doing it, instead of feeling chained and imprisoned.

From the inside out. A philosophy of real food, perfectly imperfect, instead of following rules you’re not really sure the reasoning behind.

Please. No one has time for that. In the long haul, at least. And that’s what makes the difference. The long haul. Over the course of a season or a year, even. Not the short bursts of being good and the longer bursts of being bad that always follow.

Just eat real food. Upgrade the quality of what you eat. Have more fun with it- more joy and more flow. Your body will change, your mood, your energy and then with all those things- your life. And when you do it right, those things never leave you.

Do something that will be meaningful with this special time we’re in right now.

And, if you need ideas on how, I’ve got a few.

Making the roasted carrot soup, (below) for starters. It’s super easy, super good, and just a taste of the even more amazing Winter Meal Plan, which which releases tomorrow with the goal of just this: 4 weeks of how-to with real food, in the simplest, most fun way.

For those of you who’s real goal is a more permanent one: how to cook, shop and eat healthier without the hassle and fuss. For your life.

For more info on the Winter Meal Plan, check this out.

Roasted Carrot Soup

Makes 4 servings

Notes: If you want to get real crazy, sauté ½ onion and 2 cloves garlic (or roast with the carrots), or add in 1 small roasted sweet potato before blending. Optional to use a splash of cream or almond milk while blending to make it creamier. I love it as is- simple and pure. Even for breakfast. Or, as a great sauce for other things!

2 lbs organic carrots, peeled

4 cups organic chicken broth

1 tablespoon herbs de provence or Italian blend

sea salt and pepper to taste

olive oil to drizzle

pine nuts or chopped almonds to sprinkle on top

Preheat oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel carrots and slice (if needed) into smaller chunks to speed up cooking time. Toss all to coat with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper. Roast for 25 minutes.

Add all carrots to a blender with spices and broth, and blend on high until creamy. Drizzle with olive oil, more herbs, sea salt and pepper, and sprinkle with pine nuts or slivered almonds to serve.

This recipe is a sneak peek into the brand new Winter Meal Plan. Join in the fun here.