Green soup Recipe...(ish)

Veggie soups are forgiving and flexible and it's important to pay attention to what flavors you enjoy to get the right balance for you. This recipe is based off of a recipe from Real Food All Year. 

The miso in this soup gives a great umami flavor and you'll feel great after eating this. Very clean, simple and easy to do.

I love the farmer's market, so this soup is for spring bounty, but again it can be totally flexible.

INGREDIENTS:

PHASE 1:

• 1 bunch carrots
• 2 lbs thin skinned potatoes
• spices

PHASE 2:

• Heavy fat of choice: butter or  coconut oil or ghee
• Allium of choice: Leeks (or green onions or onion or garlic)

PHASE 3:

• 1 pint broth (veggie or meat)
• 3/4 lb of nourish green or mix (spinach, kale, chard, dandelion green - only use partial)
• white miso paste

KITCHEN TOOLS:

This is easiest to do with a hand blender & it's nice to have a fine mesh strainer if you want a super smooth soup.

Nutrition note - 

we are leaving potato skins and carrot skins on because they are the most fibrous. Fiber is super important not only for regular digestion, but to truly help our organs cleanse out toxins. If you want to read more click on this article.

INSTRUCTIONS - 

PHASE 1 - ROAST

Preheat oven to 400F degrees. 

Wash potatoes, take out eyes, and cut into quarters.

Cut tops off carrots, scrub with veggie brush to remove any dirt.

Toss carrots and potatoes with spices of choice (I used brown & yellow mustard seeds and some coconut oil)

Place on baking sheet and roast for approximately 40 minutes or until they can be pierced easily with a fork. When cooked, remove from oven.

PHASE 2 - SAUTE

Chop allium of choice. You want about 1/2 cup - 1 cup

In a large stock pot, heat 3 Tbsp of the fat of choice over medium heat (if the allium starts to brown, turn the heat down)

Add allium and let soften with heat and fat.

Once allium is softened (about 10 minutes), add roasted veggies & stir

PHASE 3 - BLEND

Add pint of broth and spinach, let simmer for about 10-15 minutes

Once spinach is soft, add 3Tbsp miso and use hand blender to mix until texture is smooth and even

Taste soup and add more miso or spices if needed

OPTIONAL PHASE 4 - STRAIN or THIN

STRAIN - Because we are emphasizing the nutritional value of fiber, little bits of potato skins and leftover spices are no bother to eat as they soften when cooked. BUT you can use a fine mesh strainer to strain out the excess if you don't like the chunky bits.

THIN - this is a thick soup with the nature of the potatoes, so it can be nice to add chicken broth or other broth to thin it out and add a little bit of extra.

Why we want Superfoods to Save us

And how Health is never about just one thing.

While headlines like, "10 foods that will save your life" are catchy, easy to click and we want them to be all we need. If all we needed was more almonds or avocados, wouldn't life be swell? Unfortunately it's not that simple. While I will not argue with the indefinite benefits of super foods such as kale, seaweed, chia seeds, ginger, turmeric, etc. Our attempts to isolate these key foods and praise them as our saviors leaves a huge gap in how we can improve our nutrition and overall health.

In Chinese Medicine much of what is nutritious and beneficial to your health is based on your constitution. Each of us has a given constitution, some people are born hearty, and some more fragile. Within that there are certain foods that play to our constitution's strengths and some that will likely lead to various types of illness. While there are plenty of super foods that we can all add that help us, learning to know your body, your tastes and cravings is a much more effective way to look for longevity.

With many schools of thought and different ways of eating, it is also not too complicated. Here ar the best things you can do when choosing your food.

-shop at your farmers market (seasonal produce has immense health benefits to help keep you healthy through the season. Additionally, the less time between harvest and eating, the better! Grocery stores often have produce that has been picked and shipped, letting nutrients fall off slowly)

-cook at home (this doesn't have to be complicated or expensive! My easiest at home meal is greens with sausage and a grain. It takes 20 minutes and is healthy, affordable and has far less sodium than eating out)

-cook & eat warm foods (raw is ok once in awhile, but in general your digestion loves you to pre-digest aka cook your food! This helps longevity because your body isn't working so hard each and every meal)

If this seems more complicated than drinking that Kale smoothie today, get started on one small part today. Start to shop seasonally. Then add on the cooking in a few months. We are biodiverse creatures and need more than one food or food group to keep us going! Believe me, health and wellness will be all yours.