Do you ever just feel a change on the horizon? Even if you are not exactly sure what is going to happen, you know that something will happen? This could be for a lot of reasons: maybe you’ve been putting something out there or you’ve been working diligently on something, or maybe it’s a feeling you just get from running into the same problems or issues–like it’s time to turn right or left. This has definitely been a time like that for me.
For the past few months, I’ve retracted a little, made myself a little more scarce and a little less accessible. Not that you couldn’t or wouldn’t be able to get a hold of me, I was definitely around–but I was quiet. This is something I had never done before–just be quiet. It was almost like a mental detox time–purging old tape recordings (that can play on repeat in my head at times); revising what ideas worked and didn’t work anymore; identifying, sorting, arranging, and organizing my wants, needs and desires; literally attempting to leave no stone unturned and throwing out what wasn’t good for me anymore. I was surprised with how much energy this took to do!
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But winter has that effect on me. It is an inward, more quiet time which, take it or leave it, can be really beneficial. It’s a time when focus and earthy energy are needed to sustain our physical/mental/emotional energy on these short days. Both of those qualities can be enhanced by eating root vegetables.
I went to visit a friend today and she heated up some of the best soup I’ve had all season. It hit the spot in a way I didn’t even know I was needing! It was that good. The best part was, she made up the recipe by listening to what she wanted (and her body needed). It’s a basic butternut squash soup base–thick, creamy, with the aromatics of leeks and garlic. But she wasn’t satisfied so added coconut milk, cilantro, and then squeezed fresh lime on top. It was simply out of this world! Sometimes, it’s the little things that make all the difference.
Chelsea’s Butternut Squash Soup with a Thai Twist
Take 2 leeks, wash them thoroughly and slice very thin. Sweat in a skillet with both butter and olive oil (about 2 tablespoons each) for at least 15 minutes.
Crush three smallish garlic cloves, chop them and add to the leeks.
Dice one yellow bell pepper, add to the leeks and garlic, sweat for another 15 mins.
Add some spices–coriander, turmeric–anywhere from 1/2 – 1 teaspoon each. Use some cayenne even to spice it up.
Peel and cube one small butternut squash, add to the sweating veggies and saute for about 3 minutes.
Add vegetable or chicken broth to cover. Add a half (or whole) bag of nice frozen corn. Heavy simmer for a while, until the veggies are super soft and kind of smoosh together when you stir it with your wooden spoon.
Add one can coconut milk.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Finish with fresh cilantro and squeeze fresh lime on top. Serve warm and enjoy!
Strangely enough, in the past few weeks I have had several close people in my life stop eating gluten and, quite frankly, this boggled my mind. I’m a baker–one of my main materials is flour aka gluten. A strange fear started to well up inside of me, my ego seizing the moment and blaring words across my brain: What if that was youuuuu! What would you doooooo! It’s so scaryeeeeee!! Eeeek!! After about a day of some intense worry, I laughed. Well, I thought to myself, it isn’t me, this actually has nothing to do with me (silly girl), but I could find out more information about it to help out those in my life and myself understand more about what gluten intolerance is.
What I found out was that for some people, gluten activates their immune system and their bodies want to fight with it. This can cause strange things to occur like rashes that look like eczema or severe pain in the belly, ouch. The small intestine is lined with tiny, hair-like projections called villi. Resembling the deep pile of a plush carpet on a microscopic scale, villi work to absorb vitamins, minerals and other nutrients from the food you eat. The gluten harms this villi making it impossible for you to be, well, healthy! A severe form of gluten intolerance is called celiacs disease, and the only reason it is classified as “disease” is because of how the body reacts to the gluten with the immune system (classifying it officially as an autoimmune disorder).
However, there really are tons of options out there for eating gluten free–I was amazed actually. The Gluten-Free Girl, a wonderful blogger, has done an amazing job of taking her gluten intolerance by the reins and living a full and delicious life. Plus, she has tons of recipes, great photos, and is an incredible writer–it’s a site I enjoy often. There is also an entire magazine (yes, glossy, full color, and comes via snail mail) dedicated to gluten free living called, well, Gluten Free Living; a group exists for gluten intolerant people and teens as well as a gluten free restaurant awareness program, listing restaurants that offer gluten free options.
For a short list of things that gluten intolerant people can eat, it’s actually quite wide and varying in textures, flavors, and goodness. They include: amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, popcorn, cornmeal (polenta and tortillas), millet, as well as breads, cereals, crackers, and pasta made of corn, rice, potato, soy, arrowroot, tapioca, sago, flax, and hominy. What not to eat includes wheat in all of it’s forms.
As I was flipping through this week’s Food Day, I ran across a recipe with the title: GLUTEN FREEDOM, Moroccan Lentil and Garbanzo Bean Soup (in bold). I took this as my queue to research this topic more, come to terms with it for myself, share the information with you, and make this warm, aromatic, and slightly spicy soup. Mom, Dana, this one is for you!
This soup won’t disappoint. It even made my house smell incredible!
P.S. Happy Birthday Mel!
(sauteeing the vegetables)
Moroccan Lentil and Garbanzo Bean Soup, via FOODday
Makes 6 servings
For a little extra spiciness, add about 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper along with the black pepper. Feel free to vary the vegetables as well; try cubed butternut squash, turnips or zucchini. This soup gets even better the next day, once the flavors have married.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons salt (I only needed one, but it’s up to your tastes really…)
1 cup dried brown or green lentils
1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
7 cups water
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
Juice of 1/2 lemon (I used a whole one, delish)
In a medium pot, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery and red bell pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes. Stir in the ginger, cumin, cinnamon, pepper, salt, lentils, tomatoes and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.
Add the garbanzo beans to the soup and continue simmering about 10 minutes longer. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the cilantro and lemon juice. Taste the soup before serving and add additional salt or black pepper if needed.
Three cheers for gluten freedom!
