Recipe Review: Fat Flush Soup

I first heard about Fat Flush Soup from my dear sister. She had gone to a friends for a party and the hostess had served the soup. Sister said is was delicious and almost taste like Taco Soup. I immediately started asking lots of questions and for the recipe. She said it was from a diet in Woman's World magazine. So I did a quick internet search, found the recipe and gave it a try. It is a delicious soup, terrible name but a great soup. I can't tell you anything about the diet plan, but if you get to eat this soup that is a plus. 

There are a lot of variations of the soup out there. This is a link to the original recipe: Anna Louise's Famous Fat Flush Soup Recipe. I have made it several times, I have used both turkey and beef, tomato juice and V-8 juice, with squash and without, with lemon juice and with lime juice. Each time the soup was delicious. I think the important ingredients are citrus juice, cumin, parsley and cilantro. These are the flavors that give the soup it's unique "taco soup" flavor. The citrus juice really is a great replacement for salt. I found I did not need to add salt. Sister would tell you to add salt, but I think that would probably defeat the purpose in it's name. Fat flushing claims or not, this is a delicious soup that I plan to make many more times.

Here is what was in the pot this time:

Fat Flush Soup
Adapted from: Anna Louise's Famous Fat Flush Soup
Makes 10 to 12 cups

Ingredients

2 tsp. olive oil
1-1/4 lbs. lean ground turkey
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 large green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large yellow squash, chopped
8 oz. mushrooms, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
32 oz. reduced-sodium V-8 juice
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste
1/4 cup each fresh cilantro and parsley leaves, chopped

Directions

In a soup pot over medium-high heat, cook oil 30 seconds or until heated. Add turkey and cook 5 minutes or until cooked through, stirring occasionally. In same pot, cook onions, peppers, squash, mushrooms and garlic for 5 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in next 6 ingredients. Cover and bring soup just to a simmer (do not let boil). Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro and parsley; cover and let simmer 5 minutes more.

Garnish with shaved Parmesan cheese, if desired. Soup can be stored up to 5 days in the refrigerator or frozen for 2-3 weeks.