Detox Vegetable Soup
This dairy-free, creamy Detox Vegetable Soup is not only easy to make, it’s also LOADED with nutrient-rich goodness!
Detox Vegetable Soup
It’s made with two heads of broccoli, lentils, cashews, onions, carrots, celery and spinach—it’s the perfect way to boost your immunity and to detox from any quarantine stress-eating. For a lentil free detox soup, you may also like this Green Detox Soup with Toasted Hemp Gremolata.
Hello, I’m Heather K. Jones! I’m a dietitian, the nutrition expert for the Skinnytaste cookbooks (so excited that book five, Skinnytaste Meal Prep, is out now!), and the founder of Feel Better Eat Better, an online weight and wellness program for women who struggle with emotional eating, overeating or body image issues.
And during this challenging time I’m offering FREE emotional eating support and guidance twice a month (the first and third Wednesday of each month) inside my Feel Better Eat Better Facebook group RIGHT HERE.
So, if you could use some extra love and support, please join me! I also have a ton of FREE resources, articles and videos to help you Love Yourself Healthy RIGHT HERE.
Do you love soup season as much as I do!?
A dietitian friend of mine shared this clean and comforting veggie soup recipe with me last year. If you’ve been over-indulging or stress eating during quarantine, this soup is the perfect way to help you get back on track!
Cashew cream (cashews pureed with water) is blended with immune-boosting broccoli, lentils, cashews, onions, carrots, celery and spinach. This results in the healthiest and most delicious and creamy soup ever! It’s also vegan and gluten-free.
Drizzle a bowl with a bit of olive oil and serve with a big green salad or a piece of whole grain bread. Trust me, you feel so nourished and wholesome, you’ll be inspired to make other good-for-you lifestyle changes too!
More Soup Recipes You Will Love
- Green Detox Soup with Hemp Gremolata
- Cream of Asparagus Soup
- Cauliflower Watercress Soup
- Roasted Acorn Squash Soup
- Lebanese Lentil Soup
Detox Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 1 sweet onion, chopped
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 5 cups chopped broccoli, florets and stalks
- 7 cups water, divided
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 2 cups cooked green lentils
- 2 cups packed baby spinach
- Olive oil, for drizzling (optional)
- Ground pepper, optional
Instructions
- Place the onion, carrot, celery and broccoli in a large pot. Add 6 cups water, basil and salt to the pot and stir. Bring to a boil over high heat then cover and reduce heat to a low simmer.
- Let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until broccoli is tender.
- Meanwhile, in a blender, create your cashew cream. Blend together the cashews and remaining 1 cup water. (If you adjust the serving size, just keep the cashew to water ratio 1:1.)
- Pour the cashew cream into the pot with the veggies and stir.
- Add the green lentils and stir again.
- Add the spinach to the blender, and carefully (let the pot of veggies cool a bit first!) blend the soup in batches until smooth.
- Ladle into bowls, drizzle lightly with olive oil and top with freshly ground pepper, if desired. Enjoy!
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What can be substituted for nut allergies in this soup? Would coconut milk work ot perhaps white navy beans pureed in water instead?
At first I thought there was no way a “detox” soup would be any good (made it for a January re-set one year) and realized very quickly I was wrong about this one. I love this soup and I crave it even when I’m not trying to “detox”.
I’ve started adding in soft boiled eggs as a topping for additional protein as well as red chili flakes and additional pepper on top.
Side note, I’ve always made this recipe as written and I always have WAY more than 5 servings (which is not a bad thing).
Based on the high rating, I feel like I missed an ingredient or a step. I checked several times, and I did not. There just was not enough flavor for me. I’ve been adding sriracha and brown mustard to spice it up. Otherwise, very filling for a soup!
Lhas anyone used red lentils for this?
Love this recipe! I found that when adding the spinach to the soup when warm, it wilts and the immersion blender can’t blend the spinach well – rather it just wraps around the blades. Next time I made it, I used a nutribullet to make my cashew cream (used dry roasted unsalted cashews and no issues with grittiness) and just blended the raw spinach into the cashew cream in the nutribullet before pouring in the soup – works wonders and helps a ton with the blending process! I also add a little more salt and spices to my taste, but the foundation of the soup is great.
Great!!
What can I substitute cashews for?
macadamia nuts are great
How can this recipe be adapted to be prepared in a Vitamix blender?
I love this soup. I made it last week and I’m making it again. It’s delicious and healthy. I didn’t have trouble with the cashews at all. I did not soak them. Instead I blended them for one minute on “chop”, one more minute on “blend” and a final minute on “purée”. Your blender might have different settings but just try blending the cashews and water for a total of three minutes.
Can you freeze this!
Do I need to cook the baby spinach at all or just put it in straight into blender uncooked?
Shortly after the water started boiling in Step 1 my entire kitchen smelled so great. This recipe did not disappoint, I really like that the soup is water based and is not using stock as the base, this gives the soup a very clean and light taste.
The only change I made to the recipe was to salt the lentils as they cooked and to add course sea salt to the top of the soup after I ladled in a bowl and drizzled with olive oil.
I’m looking forward to having again for lunch tomorrow.
Super recipe!
This was such a flavorful soup that will definitely be on rotation for fall/winter. I made a few substitutions based on previous reviews….I used low sodium chicken broth in place of the water, added minced garlic, and soaked my cashews overnight. It tasted like an indulgent comfort food soup minus the guilt with a ton of great nutrients.
Do you cook the green lentils before adding? I am unfamiliar with green lentils. Thank you!
I wanted to love this recipe as I frequently make detox soups and other dishes. However, in retrospect, I realized that the directions could have been much better. 1) Like others have mentioned, cashews really should be either soaked in hot water for a bit or overnight so if you want a creamier texture do this; 2) green lentils need a bit longer soaking, too. OR they need to be added in the first step-my soup was super chunky because the lentils weren’t cooked as much; 3) to get the really bright green color like her photo, the broccoli should be added later so it isn’t cooked so long and retains its bright green.
In the future, I would probably add some nutritional yeast to make it even heartier and give it a bit more flavor. And A LOT of salt is needed
This was so good!! We had to make a few substitutions based on what we had (half broccoli for cabbage) and added some red pepper flakes and garlic. This is a great base recipe you can clean out your fridge with!
I used canned brown lentils & after reading other’s comments added some garlic and a bit more salt. Absolutely delicious!. Will make again for sure. Terrible instructions on making cashew cream though.. For best results, cashews should be soaked in (boiling) water for at least a few hours or overnight.
Good to know about the Cashews! Thank you.
I really like this recipe to reset and for a feel good lunch! Mt first batch came out a little bland, but adding a little garlic and using chicken broth instead of water gave it more flavor. Overall, easy to make. Blending up the cashews in my ninja was simple, although I have used cashew milk in the past and it turned out great!
I was really happy with this recipe. I used chicken broth in place of water. I also bought split green lentils so I just cooked them in with the broccoli mixture and it worked great. My soup was thick and I added some more water. I blended all in a vitamix until it was thick and silky smooth. To me it tastes like something between broccoli soup and pea soup. I’m trying five new skinny taste recipes this week. This was number one. I’d definitely make it again.
I made this today. This is a pretty good base for a soup but it needs a lot of seasoning and a hint of acidity. I added two bay leafs, 5 cloves of garlic, dried sage, cayenne, 1\2 cup of white wine vinegar to the pot as well. All of these additions still did not bring out the flavor I was looking for. To the final pot of soup I added Tahini paste, more vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder, celery seed and cayenne. That certainly helped the soup a lot. I’m from New Orleans so I expect a whole of good flavors from the dishes I eat. Just up the seasoning and the soup should be just fine. I like to top my soup with a little yogurt, hummus, and toasted pine nuts. Go forth and cook.
I got my wisdom teeth extracted, so I was looking for healthy recipes that I wouldn’t need to chew but were filled with nutrients. This recipe was PERFECT for that and – even better – so easy to make and prepare a ton of servings so I didn’t have to cook every day during recovery. Thank you! I’ll keep making this even when I’m not recovering from oral surgery!
Great!
Can this be made in the instapot? if so – what are the instructions you suggest?
I want to make this but I’m allergic to cashews! What can I substitute?
Lentils needs to be cooked before? Cashews needs to be soaked before? Thank you!
Thanks for the great healthy recipe! I added garlic and topped with some shredded cheese. Couldn’t find green lentils so I used regular ones, but still turned out green and beautiful!
I made this recipe today and it was delicious! Definitely would recommend and it kept me full for a long time. My 1.5 year old son also loved it which is a tall order!
I just made this and the flavor is delicious but it’s thin and not creamy. Any suggestions on how to fix it? Thank you!
I don’t usually write reviews but had to for this one. I’ve made this 3 times now, it’s awesome! I had not been feeling well (no appetite) and this was perfect, healthy way and delicious. I made the recipe exactly as written.
Made this tonight and it was fantastic! I added a few cloves of garlic for additional flavor and doubled the basil.
I want to make this! It looks amazing! Question about the amount of lentils to use because in the ingredients list it calls for 1 cup but then in the instructions it calls for 2 cups.
I think you will find that 1 cup of raw lentils will be 2 cups of cooked lentils.
I made this today and it was very good. I had to substitute 2 cups of edamame for the lentils and snuck in a cup of cooked quinoa at the very end after blending for added nutrition. It had a beautiful color and creamy texture. Would make again and try with the lentils.
This one has been in my list to try for months, but I live in CA where “soup season” has been somewhat delayed as temperatures remain in the mid to high 60s! I finally tried it tonight and I LOVE it! My kids liked that they could taste the broccoli. I’m wondering how it will freeze, since it made way more than my family will likely eat in a week. So yummy!
Sooo yummy and easy to make. Thank you!!
Amazing vegetable soup! I like to get more veggies in my diet through soups. I was hesitant to this recipe because of the word “detox”, thinking taste would be sacrificed. The other posted reviews seemed excited about it so I gave it a try. Very good! I used black lentils as my grocer was out of green (soup was still green in color!), and I sprinkled cajun seasoning on top instead of olive oil. Will definitely make again!
I cannot find green lentils. I have tried 2 stores. I am going to try making it with split peas. Do you think that will be a good substitution?
That’s what I used initially because that’s what I had on hand, it turned out great!
Oh! Also, I used fresh basil rather than dry, added at the end with the spinach leaves and it was great!
This is delicious. Mine came out a little thick so I added a bit of water to thin it out especially when reheating. Definitely best finished with some olive oil and flaked sea salt. And if you don’t mind adding a little dairy, a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese takes this to the next level. I am not a big leftovers eater but I have eaten this for 4 days in a row — I NEVER do that. I’m thrilled to have this recipe as a way to get my green veggies in. Thank you!
I am allergic to nuts. What could I substitute?
Her cheeseburger soup uses pureed cauliflower – I imagine that would be a great substitute to add creaminess!
So good!!! My husband and I absolutely love the soup!
This soup is super easy, delicious and so satisfying. I cooked the lentils in my instant pot, and then used it for all the veggies, added everything back in + immersion blender, it was super easy.
In the instant pot, did you adjust the amount of water you added? How long did you cook it?
Is there any substitution for lentils?
I added some bouillon and some bacon and it was fab!
How do you prepare the lentils? I have the dry lentils
I used French green lentils because that is what I could find. Ratio 1:2.5 lentils to water. Combine in saucepan bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to simmer for 25 minutes. Drain extra water and you’re good to go!
What a delicious, guilt-free lunch after the Halloween indulgence. Thanks for always posting flavorful, healthier recipes, Gina!
I finally made the soup substituting cauliflower for broccoli and swiss chard for baby spinach. The soup was excellent! Added to our favorite soup recipes. Thank you so much!
I put this into the WW calculator and it came up as 9 BLUE points. Did I do something wrong ? It tastes amazing and is easy to make !!!
I got the same result by putting in the nutritional information provided. 9 pts seems high for the soup!
You have to use recipe builder, calculator adds points for 0 foods.
I never review recipes, but this is so delicious that I’m making an exception. This soup is creamy, filling and seriously tasty. I used an entire 5 ounce clamshell of baby spinach and ended up with 14 cups. That’s only 2 points for a 1 cup serving or 3 points for 2 cups. Well worth the time and the points. Seriously good. Thank you for this recipe. ❤
P.S. The points above are for purple.
Is it 2c of dried lentils that are then cooked OR 2c of cooked lentils? Thanks! I’m looking forward to making this soup.
Hi, I soaked 2 cups of dry lentil overnight, which gave me about 5 cups of lentils.
So maybe soak 1 cup of lentil.
This soup was amazing! I topped with a drizzle of olive oil and some sprouted pepitas. I’m so excited to eat this for lunch all week. I think next time I might add a little roasted garlic. I blended it in small batches in my Breville. Per another reviewer let it go through the blend cycle twice, and it came out silky smooth. Somehow I ended up with 8- almost 2 cup servings, but I’m not complaining!
I made this last night and thought it was pretty tasty! I added some parmesan cheese and sprinkled crumbled crackers on top for extra goodness. It was pretty easy to make. I just used an immersion blender in my large soup pot to blend it all up nicely 🙂
Wow! I love this soup. It is so delicious!
This is SO GOOD. I cooked the lentils in veggie broth and added some extra herbs (parsley, thyme, and chives) plus crushed red pepper. I tried first with the immersion blender but I didn’t get the consistency I wanted, so I then blended it and it is PERFECT.
THANKS so much!
I wanted to love this, but can’t get the desired creamy texture!
I followed all directions (if anything, the veg cooked a bit too long) and have a very high powered blender. The taste was great, but the texture was gritty at best, instead of smooth and creamy. Any tips for what went wrong?
I had to blend it twice to get a creamy consistency.
It’s the cashew cream. Cashews only work in cream if they’ve been soaked overnight and sometimes even longer. Makes it very creamy
Can the lentils be replaced with anything else?
Hi! Looks amazing but we can’t use any nuts or coconut products. Any other ideas for a safe substitute?
Same here—no nuts.
I can’t have nuts either. Did either of you find a substitute?
Gina replied below with coconut milk
Three questions – can I make the cashew cream in a small food processer instead of a blender and could I just add the spinach to the soup and blend with an immersion blender right in the pot? Lastly, how well does this freeze? Thanks!
It freezes very well!
Yes, I think cashew cream in a small food processor would work. And yes, you could add the spinach to the soup and use an immersion blender. 🙂
Yes, I think a food processor would work for the cashew cream. And yes you could add spinach to the soup and use an immersion blender. And it freezes really well!
I made it today and it came out great! Thanks!
Do you think you can make this recipe with frozen broccoli?
Yes, for sure!
Thank you!
I made it tonight and oh my goodness this soup is delicious! My husband doesn’t really like soup especially not vegan soup but he finished the first bowl faster than I did .
I know it’s a personal preference but I added a little more salt ., Fresh pepper on top and drizzled olive oil as it was recommended.
So happy to heart this!
This looks great, although I haven’t tried this recipe as I have an intolerance for broccoli. What can be substituted. Also, I’m growing swiss chard, can I use in place of spinach? Thanks!
Hmmmm, you could try cauliflower instead of broccoli. And yes, you could swap swiss chard for the spinach. Let me know how it tastes!
Thanks so much for the suggestion! I will let you know how it turns out….I’m getting hungry just thinking about it 🙂
Heather, I can’t use broccoli or cauliflower, and do often wonder what I could substitute when these are brought up-do you have any suggestions?
We have tree nut allergies. Is there a substitute for the Cashew milk? Possibly coconut milk or cream?
Coconut milk would be great!
How about silken tofu?
Made this today, DELICIOUS!! Do you think it would freeze well?
Yes, it does freeze well!
Are the cashews needed? What would you use in their place due to allergy reasons?
Coconut milk
Looks great and want to try but we have several family members with but allergies. Can you omit the cashews or sub with something else? Maybe chicken broth or coconut milk? Thanks, Lisa
Sure to keep it creamy I would use coconut milk.
This looks amazing! Can you freeze it?
Yes! It freezes really well.
Yes you can freeze it!
Ready for a couple of lunches this week and the rest I to the freezer for future yumminess!
Hello,
How could this recipe be adjusted to the instant pot?
Thanks!
Would this freeze well, or should any of the ingredients be omitted prior to freezing and added when ready to serve?
It freezes really well! You can freeze it without omitting anything…
Have you tried this recipe with coconut cream or coconut milk? Or any other nut milks?
I have only tried it with cashews 😊
Could you use an immersion blender in the pot rather than blending in batches in a separate blender?
Yes, that would work.
can I use store bought cashew milk instead of making the cream?
I have not tried it that way, but I think the store bought cashew milk would be too thin.
Can we substitute another nut like almonds vs. cashews?
I would stick with cashews as they are creamier.
I can’t eat cashews. Can I use a different nut?
Try coconut milk.
This recipe is super yummy. Do you think it would freeze ok?
Yes, it does freeze well!
This recipe came at the perfect time! So looking forward to trying it out this week!! Will follow up then.
Wondering though if I can use any kind of chicken broth instead of water?
Yes, you could use chicken broth or vegetable broth instead of water 😊.
This is great but is quite a large batch. Do you think it would freeze well? I ground red pepper flakes on it for a little extra zing.
Yes it does freeze well 😊
Thoughts on shortcutting with frozen organic broccoli?
Using frozen broccoli would work for sure! Just put the frozen broccoli in the pot in step 1.
That looks like what I’m needing, on my shop list this week 👍🏻🥰 thank you for inspiring me with your fab recipes ❣
Great, happy to hear! XO
Could you substitute almond milk for the cashew cream?
I would try coconut milk.
If I sub coconut milk for cashew, how much should I use? 1 cup?