Film: Vidya Seasonal Kitchen | Spring
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You may have recently caught me dancing in my kitchen to capture the perfect lighting for a video shoot. And now, I’m excited to finally unveil what I’ve been dancing for! Drumroll….I’ve teamed up with Choate House again to bring to you a new quarterly video series: The Vidya Seasonal Kitchen. Each season, I’ll share a peek inside my kitchen and what I’m cooking to align with optimal health. Eating seasonally is a way to naturally cleanse your body and connect in with the fluid cycles of the earth and our evolving health needs. This series shows that seasonal cleansing can be simple, nourishing and satisfying to the mind, body and spirit.
This spring, I’ve created a refreshing and alkalizing watercress & asparagus soup, using vibrant bitter greens and citrus to support gentle cleansing. The lemon, watercress and parsley in this recipe aid in improving liver function, while the asparagus promotes circulation to the kidneys. A fresh avocado provides a creamy, rich texture to the soup, and healthy fats for optimal brain function and nutrient absorption to the body, and a spoonful of ghee provides a grounding quality to this enlightening recipe. This mineral-rich soup is perfect for those crisp early spring evenings!
WATERCRESS & ASPARAGUS SOUP
2 tbsp olive oil
1 bunch asparagus, chopped
5 garlic scapes, chopped
1 shallot, sliced
1 bunch watercress
1 tbsp ghee
1 avocado
½ cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 cups hot water
2 tbsp lemon juice
Himalayan pink salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
In a medium soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add the shallot, garlic scapes and asparagus to the pot, sautée a few minutes until the asparagus is tender. Reduce to low heat, add the watercress and ghee, stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes. Transfer mix to a high-speed blender, add the avocado, fresh parsley, lemon juice, and water. Purée until creamy. Taste and season with salt & pepper.
To serve, pour into individual bowls and garnish with chopped avocado, asparagus tops, and baby watercress leaves. Sliced radishes also make a lovely garnish, I dehydrated mine overnight to make crispy radish chips as a topping. For a heartier meal, pour soup over a large scoop of cooked quinoa. Top with a little dallop of fresh garlic crème.
Serves 3-4
Garlic Crème
½ cup pine nuts, soaked 2-3 hours
½ cup water
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
¾ tsp Himalayan pink salt
Combine all ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until creamy. If too thick, add more water to reach desired consistency.
Yields roughly 1 cup
Film: Vidya Seasonal Kitchen | Winter 
Film: Vidya Seasonal Kitchen | Fall 
Film: Vidya Seasonal Kitchen | Summer 
[…] dinners are simple and light, usually consisting of a seasonal soup, steamed or roasted veggies, and sometimes a small filet of wild-caught salmon. I love fresh herbs […]
This video is SO beautiful. I aspire to create art + food + health work at that level. And this recipe is so vibrant and nourishing! It’s going on my list of Spring dinners I must make before this year’s short asparagus season is over!
Thank you so much! Your kind words mean so much to me, and I say in return that your work is beyond beautiful and inspiring! I’d love to hear how you like the recipe once you make it. Sending love to your spring 🙂
[…] Get the spring recipe and see my full kitchen meditation here. […]
Made this last night, subbing chives for scapes (not available). Perfect recipe, delicious. Many thanks!
Wonderful! These kinds of comments always make heart skip a beat, I’m glad you enjoyed 🙂
[…] radishes, garlic, and mustard to assist the body in cleansing in an oh-so-tasty way. Pair it with my new watercress & asparagus soup recipe, and you have the perfect revitalizing spring […]
This is really such a beautiful video and a wonderful recipe. I can’t wait to try it. My only concern and comment is that it uses olive oil at the beginning to heat the initial ingredients. From my studies in India and at the Kripalu school of Yoga in Ayurveda and reading many health articles I’ve been very strongly discouraged from the use of olive oil (and most oils for that matter) to heat and cook food. In fact from what I’ve learned, ghee and coconut oil are the two best choices for cooking food. Just wanted to share… Thanks so much!
Hi Diana! I would agree with you here, ghee would be great alternative to olive oil. Since filming this video two years ago, I have moved more towards cooking solely with ghee and only using more freshly pressed oils in summer salads or post-cooking garnish. It’s difficult to find oils that have not gone rancid and agree that ghee is a more consistently stable alternative. If you are ever looking for quality olive oil, I do like Premier Research Labs for their oil and pink salt!
This Is beautiful, you are so inspiring!!!!
Thank you so much
Thank you! It was a joy to create them! I hope you enjoy the recipes, too!