A winter cold swept through my family over the weekend. The old me would have pushed through it, ignoring my body’s call for rest and restoration… and the old me would have ended up much sicker for much longer. It pains me to cancel things that are important like social events, client sessions, and meetings. But I have learned to do it. Some things can’t be cancelled …like parenting or caregiving for elders. Allowing myself to pull back from as much as possible when my body is working through an illness has been life changing. The result is that I get sick less often and I get well faster.
Soup is another go-to when someone in my family is sick. During these cold winter months, a hearty homemade soup is a great way to nourish, warm, and feed your body. By starting with whole foods like organic veggies and clean protein, adding in some healing herbs, and healthy fats you are flooding your system with nutrient rich goodness that is easy to digest and soothing to sore throats.
Soup certainly doesn’t sound like any special life changing superfood. Yet soup has massive potential that often gets hidden behind the preservatives and artificial flavoring agents that are added to many store-bought varieties.
Making weekly (or even daily) soup with local, seasonal ingredients and high-quality broth is as potent as any superfood or supplement out there. It’s a wholesome way to nourish your skin, immune system, joints, digestion, mental health, and gut.
Starting with a base of chopped onion and garlic sautéed in coconut oil is a healthy foundation. Onions have antimicrobial properties and are a great support for a burdened immune system. In the Fall and Winter, soups made with root vegetables and hearty, healing herbs like sage, oregano, and rosemary are ideal.
Bone broth is another key ingredient in any soup. Homemade bone broth is rich in natural gelatin which is anti-aging and great for rebuilding damaged intestinal lining. Making a weekly bone broth at home to have on hand for soup bases, sauces, and cooking liquid (use with water to cook whole grains or add to your crock pot when cooking a batch of beans). Bone broth from scratch is as easy as throwing your leftover chicken carcass in a large pot of water and letting it simmer for 24 hours.
If you’re interested in getting healthy, restoring your digestion and boosting your energy, check out my comprehensive program, Gut Restore. The program is full of tips, strategies, tools, and recipes to help rebuild your digestive health and intestinal flora.
Enjoy this soup recipe in good health!
Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
This is one of my favorite soups. I could eat it every day, it’s so tasty and nutritious. A good soup does wonders for the body and soul. Soups offer a certain comfort that other foods lack. They’re also a vehicle for nutrient dense ingredients.
Butternut squash is an excellent source of vitamin A and one of the healthiest starches you can get. It’s got a gentle sweetness to it which pairs well with a bold curry flavors and embraces the sweetness of apple. Apple and butternut squash naturally compliment each other. They’re harvested at the same time of year, they’re both high in fiber. When Fall comes around this is one of the first soups I whip up. It’s become a staple in my house and I hope you’ll enjoy it just as much.
Ingredients
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Tablespoon curry powder
1 lb butternut squash, cut into cubes
3 granny smith apples, cut into cubes
4 cups homemade chicken stock or bone broth
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp thyme
Directions
Heat oil in a large pot, add onions and garlic and simmer until golden. Add curry powder, salt, butternut squash and apple chunks and cover with chicken stock. Allow to simmer for about 30 minutes until butternut squash is soft. Use an immersion blender or add to your blender in batches to create a smooth creamy consistency, enjoy!
- Another alternative to cutting the squash is to split it in half, remove the seeds and roast in the oven with skin on oiled baking sheet at 400 degrees for one hour (or until fork can easily pass thru). You can then cool it a bit and scoop the flesh directly into the blender with the broth and other ingredients.
