Autumn Soup: Kale Shiitake Sweet Potato Soup
Crave sweet, but know sugar is keeping you stuck? Try this soup for Fall!
I love sweet - in fact, I always have.I had 12 cavities before the age of 12, but haven't had high fructose corn syrup in over 10 years. And my body thanks me for it!Still, I love sweet, so I add sweet flavor through my day with nutrient dense foods that taste sweet.Sweet potatoes, carrots, beets, parsnips and more.And there is some old school medicine in those humble sweet root veggies!
Traditional Chinese Medicine has a long history of connecting different organs with different seasons, elements, foods, and even emotions.
According to the Five Element system, autumn is the season of the Metal element, governed by the lungs and large intestine. This sets up the conditions for flu or head cold, which comes from your body trying to expel excess mucus, toxins, and inferior fats.Foods with a sour taste help with this detoxification process, and can be included daily as we enter into autumn. These foods include unpasteurized apple cider vinegar, lemons, limes, grapes, raw sauerkraut and pickles, and whole grain sourdough breads.
Pungent foods such as spices, ginger, and black pepper support the Metal element. These stimulate the digestion and help with the assimilation of food. Include pungent taste with seasonal fall foods such as apples, grapes, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, collards, grapes, kale, pears, persimmons, pumpkins, winter squash, and yams.This soup has a lot of great autumn ingredients and will help keep your body strong and centered throughout the season:
Kale Shiitake Sweet Potato Soup
4 cups water or low-sodium vegetable stock1 cup fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps thinly sliced1 small sweet potato, peeled, chopped into 1/4 inch cubes1/2 bunch fresh kale, washed and stems removed1 teaspoon Mellow white miso, per cup1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seedsDirections:1. In a saucepan combine the water/broth, shitake mushrooms and sweet potato and bring to a boil.2. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes.3. Meanwhile, chop the kale into bite size pieces and add to the soup.4. Cook until tender, another 8 minutes.5. Dissolve a teaspoon of light miso in a bowl with a small amount of broth.6. Ladle in the soup and sprinkle with toasted pumpkin seeds.Yield: 6 servingsLearn more How to End your tummy troubles with my favorite probiotics!!Check this out Fix My Period (hormonal health/women)!