March 12, 2024

This Delicious Mushroom Soup Is Vegan, Too

Savory Vegan Mushroom Soup Mushroom soup is a fall and winter favorite but now you can make a light, healthy version low in calories and fat yet packed with flavor and nutrients. Whole food ingredients like detoxifying mushrooms, onion and garlic make the base for this simple soup you can make in minutes. Vegetable broth and the secret ingredient, rolled oats, blend together to create a creamy smooth, savory soup. Every ingredient in this recipe lends itself to health; mushrooms in particular are packed with immune boosting compounds called beta-glucans and are a rich source of vitamins and minerals. Excellent […]
January 2, 2024

Warm Up with Savory Green Pea Soup

Green Pea Soup This simple pea soup takes minutes to prepare and offers a rich creaminess and savory flavor everyone will love. Onion and cardamom add depth to the classic pea soup while ginger offers a subtle and unexpected spiciness. The fiber in the peas helps pull toxins out of the body. You can easily whip up this 6-ingredient soup with a basic blender or food processor making a perfect lunch, dinner or leftovers. Serves 10-12 Ingredients 1 Tbs. butter 1 large onion, roughly chopped (about 2 cups) 2 tsp. minced fresh ginger 1 tsp. ground cardamom 4 cups vegetable […]
December 19, 2023

This Veggie Soup Is Rich with Antioxidants

  Moringa Vegetable Soup In Africa and Asia, where protein-rich moringa plants grow in abundance, people add the tiny leaves to soups and stews just before serving. The leaves are wilted by the hot liquid but are not fully cooked, so their vitamins stay intact. I also like the flavor of moringa combined with antioxidant-rich squash, eggplant, and okra (another African ingredient). For this soup, any smoked fish, such as salmon, can be used. To make this soup vegan, use vegetable stock in place of the chicken stock and omit the fish or fish sauce. To give this soup an […]
November 6, 2023

Pumpkins and Squash Have Souper Powers

Pumpkins and Squash Have Souper Powers. You may only associate pumpkins with Halloween, but fresh pumpkins are available from October through February. They contain large amounts of potassium (33 percent more than a medium banana) and beta carotene without a boat-load of calories—49 per cup mashed. The high amounts of potassium in pumpkins works with sodium to balance the amount of water in the body. A diet high in potassium helps keep blood pressure at a healthy level and assists with the prevention of strokes. Pumpkins contain more than 2400 mcg of the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin, which are important […]
October 23, 2023

Hearty White Bean Soup

White Bean Soup This hearty vegetarian soup makes a great appetizer or light lunch. I use my Homemade Vegetable Stock as a base, but you can also use store-bought vegetable broth. You can use white cannellini or navy beans instead of white kidney beans. Beans are loaded with protein and detoxifying fiber, which makes them a great ally if you’re trying to manage your weight. Fiber can also help regulate cholesterol and reduce your risk of certain cancers. Swiss chard has cancer-inhibiting carotenoids and vitamin C. Chard is an excellent source of vitamin K, which helps build strong bones. Both […]
September 24, 2023

Enjoy the World of Benefits in Chicken Soup

No matter the country or culture, every one of them has a version of chicken soup. There is something universal about a warm, briny brew with chunks of chicken, vegetables, herbs and sometimes rice or pasta. Depending on how it’s prepared, chicken soup provides fluids, fiber, protein and vitamins. It’s a delicious first course, soothing comfort food, and some even attribute it with healing powers (‘Jewish penicillin’). But it’s not just folklore. Chicken soup acts as an anti-inflammatory, inhibiting immune system cells from over-reacting. It also relieves nasal congestion and sore throats. Plus, the zinc in chicken improves absorption of […]
September 14, 2023

Oregon Vegan Mushroom Soup

This recipe is from my latest cookbook, Anti-Aging Dishes from Around the World. Oregon is a fabulous place to forage for mushrooms. There, varieties such as chanterelles, hedgehog, matsutake, lobster, morel, black truffle, white truffle, and milky cap grow under Douglas fir, pine, oak, western hemlock, Sitka spruce, aspen, willow, and birch trees. If you can get your hands on any of these exotic mushrooms, especially morels and/or chanterelles, use them in this soup. Vegetable broth and the secret ingredient rolled oats—not steel-cut or instant—blend together to create vegan creaminess in this light, healthy soup that’s low in calories and fat, […]
June 6, 2023

Lemon Herb Bean Soup

Soup isn’t just for winter anymore! This hearty, flavorful soup features anti-inflammatory ingredients balanced with fiber for gut health, protein and healthy fats. Plenty of fresh and dried herbs and spices liven up the flavor as beans take the center stage in this dish. Blending part of the soup helps it maintain a complex texture while taking on a creaminess. Soup makes wonderful leftovers as flavors mingle over time. It also freezes well so it is perfect for weekend batch cooking and planning ahead for busy weekends ahead. Enjoy this light, healthy soup this spring. SERVES 6 Ingredients 2 Tbs. […]
February 25, 2023

Soup Recipes Warm It Up for Winter

On freezing winter days, nothing warms you up more than a hot, hardy bowl of soup. Add to that a variety of ingredients that boost your immune system, and you’ve got the makings of a perfect cold-weather meal. While we don’t have the severe winter weather that much of the country has, we do have chilly winter nights here in California.  On those nights, I love to come home and prepare a delicious soup. Here are six of my favorite soup recipes that I hope you will enjoy. Potato Kale Soup Serves 4 This Balkan-inspired recipe has clean, bright flavors that […]