Grain-Free Creamy Lemon Rice Soup
This Grain-Free Creamy Lemon Rice Soup is an amazingly cozy soup. It’s got it all — lemony zing, a creamy texture, and healing ingredients. This is perfect for a cold autumn or winter day.
My name is Stacey and I’m a soup addict. I could eat soup all day everyday, all year round. Sometimes I like a thinner brothy soup, other times I like a creamy cozy soup. This one falls into the latter category — this Grain-Free Creamy Lemon Rice Soup is thick, velvety, comforting, and hearty.
I think I’ve always loved soups. When I was a kid, my favorite soup was wonton soup from the local Chinese restaurant — I would eat that first and sometimes as my only food (with those crispy crunchy fried noodles) instead of all of the other food that was ordered.
As an adult, my tastes have changed… okay, maybe not that much because I would probably still love that wonton soup…
One of my favorite soups and one of my all-time most-requested recipes is my White Bean And Kale Soup. It too is creamy and hearty. So, it makes sense that the creaminess in this lemon rice soup is achieved the same way — with white beans. What you taste in this soup is lemony goodness, but there are blended up beans hidden in here, making for an extra creamy and delicious and nutritious soup.
I like to use bone broth in place of regular broth in all of my soups. Bone broth is so good for so many things, it seems silly not to make this easy switch. I have been using store-bought bone broth lately, but I intend to start making my own again. If you want to make homemade bone broth, try out this recipe from my friend Daniela at Calm Eats.
If you need an even better reason to try this soup, white beans are good at boosting energy and calming the mind. They can help improve your memory and can lower cholesterol. And, they are a great source of protein. So, this soup is a slam dunk.
There are other foods too that can help you reduce anxiety and stress. Download my free ebook now to learn all about them.
Here are some of the great healing ingredients in this Grain-Free Creamy Lemon Rice Soup recipe:
Bone broth is filled with bone marrow and essential fatty acids — these things promote optimal brain health. It also contains glycine, which is an amino acid that helps with memory, concentration, stress, and focus. You can make your own bone broth, but you don’t have to anymore. Bone broth is now available in tons of markets. (See the recipe below for the awesome ready-made bone broth I used in this soup recipe.) It’s sold in boxes just like chicken or vegetable broth. The glucosamine in bone broth can reduce inflammation and strengthen the bones. It’s also great for your skin, hair, and nails. This is a great thing to use for a quick soup base, or to just sip on during the day. Sometimes I’ll have a hot cup of bone broth first thing in the morning for a quick healing pick me up.
White beans are good at boosting energy and calming the mind. They can help improve your memory and can lower cholesterol. And, they are a great source of protein.
Onions are great for your immune system; they are a natural antihistamine. Recently, I recommended that a patient with bronchitis put sliced raw onions in her socks when she went to sleep… she woke up so much better; they actually can rid the body of bacteria. (I know I’ve told you this before, but it really is awesome!) Onion is a superhero in the food world!
Celery actually helps stop bleeding — so if you or anyone you know has just had surgery, start adding celery to your dishes! Celery is also great to help lower blood pressure and it’s been known to help with insomnia.
Carrots help strengthen the organs in your body. They also are good for the eyes (this is their claim to fame) and they promote healthy digestion. Many moons ago, people used to make carrot tea to ward off measles and to prevent cancer. Carrots help detoxify the body and in today’s world of Chinese medicine, they are prescribed to ease constipation and tonsillitis.
Garlic is amazing in its antiviral and antibacterial capabilities. Garlic is actually a Chinese herb (Da Suan). It’s used to kill toxins and parasites and also to reduce swelling in the body. It’s what I call a great “A” herb: anesthetic, antibacterial, anti fungal, antioxidant, antiviral, etc….
Grain-Free Creamy Lemon Rice Soup | Print |
- 3 Tbs ghee (or can use unsalted butter)
- 1 med onion, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 1 15-oz can white beans, undrained
- 4 cups bone broth, divided
- 1 cup water
- juice of 2 small lemons
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cup orzo (I use grain-free chickpea orzo, or if not grain-free can substitute rice)
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 3 Tbs snipped fresh dill
- Heat ghee in a large soup pot over med heat.
- Add onion, garlic, celery, and carrots. Season with salt and pepper and sauce until the veggies start to soften, about 5 mins.
- Stir in the white beans and ½ cup broth, and sauce, stirring, for 2 mins.
- Transfer this mixture to a blender and whiz it up until creamy, or use a stick blender until creamy.
- Pour the pureed bean mixture back into the pot and stir in 3-1/2 cups broth and 1 cup of water.
- Add the lemon juice.
- Add bay leaves and salt. Add a generous amount of black pepper.
- Let simmer 20 mins.
- Add spinach and orzo and cook until the orzo is al dente.
- Stir in the parsley and dill.
- Ladle into bowls and enjoy!
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