Articles,  Nutrition and Food,  Recipes

Hearty And Healthy Soup Recipe Just In Time For Fall…Acorn Squash Soup!!

As luck would have it, I got back from the Natural Products Expo last week and started to develop a cold. I am not one to get sick, but over the past few days I have surrendered to the ugly fate and tried to let my body rest and sweat out what appears to be a nasty sinus infection.Image 3

I woke up this morning and was craving soup. I don’t crave soup often, but when I do its either because it’s cold outside, or I am feeling under the weather. I would usually drive over to Jerry’s Deli in Marina Del Rey and get a huge chicken matzo ball soup to go, but I didn’t feel like driving, nor did I feel like ingesting the amount of sodium I know is in that soup! I looked on my counter top at the lone acorn squash and decided I would create a delicious and healthy soup using that as my base. I have to be honest with you. This soup took about an hour to make, because I had to cook the acorn squash a bit so I could peel the skin first. It is also kind of a pain to grate up 3-4 inches of ginger root, but let me tell you, when it was all said and done, this is probably one of the best tasting soups EVER.

The ginger root gives it a kick and is great for your digestive system, the onion and garlic make it a little more savory, the coconut oil adds a touch of sweetness and carrots add not only sweetness, but also extra beta-carotene. This soup is high in vitamins A and C, not to mention a ton of fiber and other nutrients. Did I also mention that this soup is vegan and gluten-free? So what’s not to like about it?Image 7

 

 

VEGAN ACORN SQUASH SOUP

1 organic acorn squash, chopped

1 cup of chopped carrots

1 cup of chopped onions

4-5 cloves of chopped garlic

3-4 inches of grated ginger root

2-3 tbsp coconut oil

3 cups of low sodium vegetable broth

sea salt and pepper to taste

First, I believe it is best to cook the acorn squash so that you can peel the skin off. For this you will need to slice it in half, place each half face down in a cooking pan with 1/2 inch of water for about 30 minutes.

While this is happening you can put the coconut oil, carrots, onions and garlic in a pan and saute them for a few minutes, then place them in a pot. Once the squash is done, peel it and add it to the pot as well with the ginger and the vegetable broth. Simmer all the ingredients (it should look like the above picture) for about 30 minutes.

Then you will take this mixture and pour it into a food processor or Vitamix if you own one, and blend it until it is pureed to your desired amount of thickness. Then you can pour some in a bowl and get fancy with a sprig of parsley, like I did in the first picture.

Another awesome thing about this soup is…there is leftovers! That is when my handy dandy mason jars get to come out and play. These are a great investment (only about 10-15 dollars at your local hardware store) and great for storing/freezing leftovers. Image 6

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