Eating Well for Super Immunity in the Winter Months

A healthy immune system is vital for helping your body deal with infections caused by viruses, bacteria, fungus, and environmental toxins. As the winter months approach, it becomes even more important to support your immune system by consistently eating a balanced diet, exercising, and making healthy lifestyle choices. But the real fuel for a strong immune system is using food as medicine.

Super Soup
An immunity-boosting diet includes light, easily digestible meals throughout the day, especially soup. A myriad of health benefits and flavors are derived from the herbs, vegetables, and broth. Soups also can help curtail the onset or ease the symptoms of colds and flu. Look for soups that include immunity-enhancing ingredients such as ginger, onion, garlic, mushrooms, and a variety of veggies and herbs in a broth-base. As always, food made from scratch is best!

Super-Immunity Diet Guidelines

• Include healthy fats such as extra virgin olive oil.
• When it comes to seasoning your foods, incorporate a variety of herbs and spices for flavor.
• For veggies, choose steamed broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, leafy greens, and sweet potatoes.
• Fermented foods such as miso and yogurt help promote healthy intestinal flora and combat harmful bacteria in the GI tract.
• Limit red meat; instead, eat moderate amounts of fish and poultry.
• It's also smart to limit sugar in your diet. Studies have shown excessive sugar intake can interfere with optimal immune system function.
• As far as beverages, the constituents in green tea have been shown to be both anti-inflammatory and immune enhancing.

Cheers to your good health this winter!

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References

Immunity Boosting "Better than Chicken Soup"

This immunity-boosting soup is made with a virtual garden of powerful ingredients (in bold) that contain beneficial nutrients for your immune system:

Turmeric adds a subtle flavor and a beautiful yellow color. The active ingredient is curcumin, a powerful antioxidant.
Black pepper also has antioxidant properties.
Cayenne pepper can clear congestion due to the main active compound capsaicin, which has anti-inflammatory properties.
Shiitake mushrooms are rich in vitamins and minerals and contain unique phytonutrients that contribute to good health.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 8 fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
• 4 cups low-sodium mushroom, vegetable, or chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups finely sliced kale
• 1 cup cubed butternut squash
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• 6 slices astragalus root (optional)
• 1 fresh lemon, Juice of
• 1 teaspoon miso

Instructions:

1. In a sauce pot over medium-high heat, add oil and cook onion and garlic, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes.
2. Stir in turmeric and mushrooms, and cook 2 minutes more.
3. Add broth, kale, squash, ginger, cayenne, and astragalus. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and let cool slightly, add lemon juice and miso. Cover and let sit 5 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 90 calories (5 from fat), 0.5g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 160mg sodium, 19g carbohydrate (6g dietary fiber, 5g sugar), 2g protein

Image Attribution: minadezhda/bigstockphoto.com
References

Barley and Mushroom Soup

With crimini mushrooms and tawny port, this barley-mushroom soup is chock-full of flavor, nutrients, and fun! Prep time: 20 min. Cook time: 55 min.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup pearl barley1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 3 medium cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced in 1/4-inch cubes
• 2 and 1/2 cups crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup tawny port
• 1 tablespoon + 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
• 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh sage (or 1/2 teaspoon dried sage)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Rinse and soak barley in 1 cup of warm water while preparing the rest of the ingredients.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of broth in a medium soup pot. Sauté onion, garlic, and carrots in broth for 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
3. Add mushrooms and continue to sauté for another 3 minutes. Add drained barley and tawny port; cook for about 2 minutes.
4. Add rest of broth and bring soup to a boil on high heat. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until barley and carrots are tender.
5. Add herbs, salt, and pepper at the end of cooking and serve.

Image Attribution: Y_Gayvoronskaya/bigstock.com

Super Green Soup

You spring clean your house, and maybe even your life - so why not your body? This tasty super green soup is healthy, quick and easy. Packed with leafy greens and fiber-loaded beans, it provides plenty of nutritional benefits without weighing you down - a perfect preparation tool for the return of warmer weather. Remember to use organic ingredients!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of chopped kale
• 2 cups of chopped chard
• 2 cups of chopped spinach
• 1 can of beans (your favorite), rinsed and drained
• 4 cloves of fresh garlic
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 - 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 1 - 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 med potato, cubed
• 1 Tbsp chopped cilantro (optional)
• 6 cups of vegetable broth
• 4 cups of water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Parsely or dill to sprinkle on top

Directions:

Combine the broth, water, garlic, onion, carrots, potato and celery in a large pot. Bring to a boil and then cover, reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes. Add kale and beans and cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until the kale has wilted. Remove from heat and add spinach, cilantro, salt and pepper. Stir well and allow to cool about 5 minutes. Puree with a blender or food processor. Serve warm, garnished with parsley or dill on top.

Image Attribution: markuso/freedigitalphotos.net