This nutritional take on the already healthy classic carrot ginger soup was a welcome change at my table. Kids can appreciate the extra creaminess thanks to the sweet potatoes and as a parent you can get on board with the extra protein, vitamin Bs and skin/joint-enhancing nutrients. It’s an all-around good guy sort of soup–so let’s start “creative souping” and ladle out the goodness.
First off, let’s chat about nutritional yeast. No, it’s not remotely related to the yeast you’d put in bread to make it rise. Nutritional yeast, also called “nooch”, is a microorganism (Saccharomyces Cerevisiae) grown on molasses that is dried then heated to deactivate it. Vitamin B12 is usually added at the end of the process. That’s great news for Vegans who sometimes struggle to meet the B12 daily requirements. Two heaping tablespoons of nutritional yeast contains about 10 grams of protein. Pretty sweet, huh? The taste is not sweet though, even though it was grown on molasses. Some people describe it as a nutty/cheesy flavor which enhances all different sorts of meals. Soups…for instance! I have even mixed it up with coconut cream and used it on gluten-free macaroni for a dairy-free “cheesy” experience. Yes, there are a ton of uses for it.
Bone Broth, also in this soup, is just another way of saying Wonder Food. Imagine the low and slow process of boiling bones for a day. All of that collagen and elastin goodness from the bones transfers to the liquid and you end up with a very potent healing “liquid gold” ready to work its charms in your body. Here are some of the components of bone broth that make it a healing food for your skin, immune system and joints:
Minerals: There’s an A-Z of minerals found in the bones such as calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc, copper, iron, potassium, sodium and phorphorus. (1)
Amino Acids: Glycine is essential for proper growth of muscles, protection of joints and cartilage, digestion, the immune system and nervous system.(2, 3) As an added bonus, glycine can help with better sleep.(4) Proline, another amino acid, is like glue for the bones and skin. Glutamine is important in keeping the integrity of the gut lining.(5) These three amino acids, among others, make up collagen.
Collagen: Collagen contained in bone marrow is critical for the production of both immune cells and red blood cells.(6) It is also the site where some beneficial fats are located. Early “glue” was, in fact, made from collagen.(7)
Gelatin: The jelly-like consistency of bone broth is due to gelatin and is excellent for keeping joints lubricated and skin soft.(8)
Glycosaminoglycans: This component of collagen is part of the synovial fluid surrounding joints.(9) It’s in all connective tissue such as tendons, ligaments and cartilage.
You must be pretty much convinced now that bone broth is a great source of nutrition for your whole body. And if you, like me, want to keep skin and joints as young as possible, make this a part of your daily routine! Now, you may not have enough time in the day to make your own bone broth–most of us don’t but we know we want the effects of bone broth in our life. After hunting around for a high quality product I can confidently pass onto you what I found: It’s Organika Bone Broth Protein Powder and easily mixes up in hot water.
Creamy Carrot Ginger & Sweet Potato Soup
Who doesn't love Carrot Ginger soup. Even my daughter likes that extra little bite. If something is good, I try to make it even better and that's what I've done with this soup. Sweet Potatoes are a dynamic way to cream it up, nutritional yeast adds flavor, protein and vitamin B12 and bone broth...well, that's just a miracle food in my opinion.
Ingredients
- 2 T coconut oil
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 inch ginger, diced
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 cup chopped carrot
- 1 cup sweet potato, cut thin and leave the skins on for added fiber
- 3 cups bone broth (2 T of Organika bone broth powder in 3 cups hot water)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- garnish: cilantro and pumpkin seeds
Directions
- Step 1 Heat a large pot to medium and saute onions for 3 minutes
- Step 2 Add ginger, garlic and turmeric and stir
- Step 3 Add carrots, sweet potatoes, bone broth, sea salt and stir
- Step 4 Cover and simmer on medium for 15 minutes
- Step 5 Remove from heat and add nutritional yeast
- Step 6 Pour into vented blender and process for 2 minutes until smooth
- Step 7 Garnish, serve with love and enjoy!
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15982542
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19826900
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16095452
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4397399/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4369670/
- https://www.jstor.org/stable/20421458?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
- https://archive.archaeology.org/online/news/glue.html
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25884286
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1074552105000426