Spring Cleaning! Making vegetables part of a healthy diet
Vegetable's virtues have been known and lauded for millennia, and it's in the spring that the body most desperately needs a little tune-up, to be cleansed and detoxified after the rigours of winter.
Vegetarian Cuisine
Many people think of vegetarian cooking as a healthy way to eat, but when you braise vegetables in butter or blanket them with béchamel or cheese sauce, the healthful benefits are lost under all the camouflage.
On the other hand, raw, steamed or wok-seared vegetables can be an excellent source of vitamins and nutrients, while supplying the body with all the revivifying elements it needs.
To thoroughly cleanse the system, we suggest making a big pot of vegetable soup, containing lots of cabbage, to be eaten at every meal for five days.
The Top Ten Low Cal Vegetables
- Cucumber - 12
- Celery - 13
- Lettuce - 13 to 18
- Endive - 20
- Radish - 20
- Peppers - 22
- Tomato - 22
- Spinach - 25
- Asparagus - 25
- Cabbage - 27
Our allies
Asparagus - Cookedd
Diuretic because of the asparagine it contains. Depurative, tonic.
Eggplant - Cooked to a puréee
Diuretic. A stimulant for the liver and intestines. Eggplant contains elements that trap cholesterol in the intestines, which then eliminate it from the body. It thus helps prevent the fatty build-up that can form around the heart.
Carrots - Raw or cookedd
Carrots, in juice form, are useful for revitalizing the liver and are an excellent morning tonic.
Celery - Raw
Excellent for slimming, since it satisfies hunger while being low in calories. Diuretic and tonic.
Chicory (Endive) - Infusion
Useful for reducing - in the 18th century, when people commonly ate heavy high-fat meals, the French aristocracy embraced a new, lighter cuisine. To those suffering from indigestion, gout, apoplexy and kidney complaints because they continued eating rich foods, doctors of the new school recommended fasting and an inner cleansing using wild chicory infusions, a 24-hour treatment that can be repeated after 2 weeks if necessary.
Cabbage - Cooked
The Romans believed that cabbage chased away melancholy. Very rich in vitamins and minerals, cabbage provides the elements necessary to revitalize us after the winter when our system tends to be at a low ebb.
Cress - Raw
Detoxifier, revitalizer
Fennel - Cooked
The dieter's companion, fennel is a good match for fatty fish and green fruits. Greeks called it "marathon," derived from "mariano," meaning to slim down.
Leek - Raw and Cooked
As summer draws near, detoxify your body with spring leeks. Easily digestible and bursting with nutrients, they're indispensable for revitalizing your skin and regaining your flat tummy before the summer holidays arrive.
Radish - Raw
Good for slimming because it is low in calories, and can be eaten raw as an appetite suppressant.


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