Top 5 Healthiest Soups

• The Minestrone Soup

Commonly available in the Italian restaurants, Minestrone soup is mostly prepared of tomato. It contains lots of fiber rich beans, vegetables rich in antioxidants and lycopenes which is great for the heart. You can make it healthier by adding more beans and less of pasta.

Minestrone Soup Recipe

Chopped Red Onion- 1 medium
Olive Oil- 1 tablespoon
Diced Carrots- 2
Chopped Sweet Red Pepper- 1
Celery Stick- 1
Passata- 500g
Vegetable Stock- 600ml
Worcestershire Sauce- 1 tablespoon
Pasta Twirls- 50g
Drained Cannellini Beans- 250g
Crusty Bread

Instructions

Cook chopped onion in the olive oil over low heat.
Add carrots, celery, red pepper to the onion and stir well for 5 minutes.
Keep stirring the vegetables.
Add passata, vegetable stock, sauce and pasta. Simmer it and stir properly for 20 minutes. The pasta should become soft.
Add cannelini beans to the vegetables. Heat it for about 5 minutes. Serve hot with crusty bread.

• The Black Bean Soup

It gets its black color from the antioxidants present in it. It is said the darker the soup, the higher the content of flavonoid. Black bean soup is considered as one of the healthiest soups as it contain antioxidants for the protection of the cells. It is also high in fiber and proteins.

Black Bean Soup Recipe

Olive Oil (Extra Virgin)- 1 tablespoon
Finely Chopped Onion- 1 large
Finely Chopped Garlic- 4 cloves
Black Beans (Rinsed and Drained)- 4 Cans (1pound)
Lemon Juice- ½ teaspoon
Ground Cumin- ½ teaspoon
Dried Oregon- ½ teaspoon
Finely Chopped Parsley- 2 tablespoons
Ground Black Pepper- To taste
Water- 4 cups

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a pot. Sauté chopped onions over medium heat for about 4 minutes.
Add garlic to onions and sauté it till onions turn golden brown.
Add remaining ingredients to the onions. Then add water to them. Simmer the flame and cook.
Mash the beans to make the soup a little thick. Cover the pot and cook over low flame for about 10 minutes.
Serve hot.

• The Miso Soup

Miso soup is made of soy paste which is fermented. This is great for strengthening the immune system. It also adds good bacteria to the gut, making the digestive tract healthy and aiding the digestion. It is a weight watcher’s dream soup as it is low in calories. The Miso soup can prevent cancer.

Miso Soup Recipe

Water- 900mg
Fresh Soft Tofu- 200g
Miso Paste- 60g
Spring Onions- 40g
Fried Bean Curd- 40g
Kelp- 20g
Dried Bonito- 20g

Instructions

Soak kelp in water for an hour. After an hour, boil the water and kelp.
Remove the kelp from the water and let the water cool.
Put dried bonito in this water and boil. Once it is boiled strain the bonito.
Add miso paste to the water and mix properly.
Add kelp, spring onion, tofu and bean curd to the water. Mix it well and boil again.
Serve it hot.

• The Vegetable Soup

This one wins the list hands down. You get the benefit of having a variety of vegetables at one go. It will give you all the benefits of the vegetables. The vegetable soup is great for heart, weight loss and general health. It is better to go prepare it at home, instead of buying the canned one. The canned soup has high sodium content and also added sugar.

• The Tomato Soup

Tomatoes are rich in lycophens which is very good for the health of your heart. The tomato soup is also low in fat and calories. Prepare it at home and avoid it at restaurants as they might add creme, sugar and butter to enhance the taste.

Minimalist

On the zenhabits site  Leo Babauta talke about paring down and trying to be a minimilast and shares tons of thought provoking ideas and new thinking.  I suggest you wander around over there http://mnmlist.com/ .... a lot of this mindset falls in line with our job as caretakers of our planet.

In France a small company called Teddyfish makes bags by hand following the handmade tradition much like we who sell on handmade marketplaces such as Esy.  Their philosophy of production is beautiful: “We believe in ‘petite-production’, which means the willingness to work on slower rhythm and scale. Through creating and hand-making by ourselves, we are aiming to flavor our products with the warmth of the craftsmen’s hands, instead of the gasoline from the machine.”

Imagine if our world of mass-production was turned into a world of petite-production. People would hand-make clothing bicycles furniture food.

We would produce less and consume less. Things would cost more but people would make more for their labor.

We would love our work more. Produce quality things that last. Love our lives more. Call it Anti-Walmartization.

What is mnmlist.com?
It’s a site by Leo Babauta of Zen Habits.
It’s about minimalism, and why it’s important today.
It’s about stuff, and how it has come to overwhelm us.
It’s about distractions and commitments and a neverending task list.
It’s about the culture of more, of bigger, of consumption.
It’s about how less is the answer.

Nutritional Value of Cabbage

The nutrients found in cabbage may not only help reduce the risk of cancer, but also boost immunity, fight damage caused by free radicals, promote bone health, boost heart and digestive health, and aid weight loss.

 

 

Nutrients in Cabbage
When it comes to nutritional value, cruciferous vegetables like cabbage are some of the best choices. An excellent source of vitamins C and K, cabbage is also a very good source of:

• vitamin B6
• folate
• manganese
• fiber
• Green and red cabbage are good sources of vitamins A, B1, and B2, calcium, potassium, tryptophan, protein, and magnesium.

Health Benefits of Cabbage
Cruciferous vegetables, including cabbage, are well-known for their anticancer properties. Cabbage is rich in phytochemicals that help protect the body from free radical damage and help fight against carcinogens. Research suggests those who regularly consume cabbage have a lower risk of certain cancers, especially breast cancer.

 

Red cabbage is rich in natural pigments called anthocyanins. The anthocyanins in cabbage act not only as powerful antioxidants but also have anti-inflammatory effects and help protect against cardiovascular disease and may help lower blood sugar levels.

 

One cup of cooked cabbage contains 91.7 %DV of vitamin K and 50.3 %DV of vitamin C. Vitamin K promotes bone health by reducing bone loss, reducing the changes of bone fractures. Vitamin C not only boosts immunity but offers protection against premature aging and boosts skin health.

 

The fiber in cabbage boosts digestive health and can lower cholesterol, reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. In addition, cabbage is very low in calories with only 32 calories per cup (cooked). Low-calorie, high-fiber foods boosts weight loss efforts and losing even a small amount of weight lowers blood pressure, increases energy, and can help keep blood sugar levels under control.

 

How to Eat More Cabbage

Taking advantage of the nutritional value of cabbage is easy when cabbage is thought of as more than just an ingredient for coleslaw. Cabbage can be added to stews and soups, used to replace lettuce in a salad, on a sandwich or a burger, used as a wrap for steamed fish or sautéed with onions and served as a side dish or used to make homemade sauerkraut.

simple omelette

an easy & delicious gluten free breakfast.

Ingredients:
2 eggs, beaten lightly
1 Tbsp sun dried tomatoes, chopped and softened in hot water for a few minutes
1 Tbsp fresh chives, cut into small pieces
4 mushrooms, sliced and sautéed in a bit of olive oil.
1 tsp olive oil
sea salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
1 sweet potato, washed and cut into 1 inch cubes

Directions:

1. Boil your sweet potato for 10-20 minutes until cooked.

2. Heat a bit of olive oil in a non-stick pan on med.  Pour in your eggs.  When the omelet begins to cook, lift an edge to allow the liquid on top to move out to the pan.  continue doing this until most of the liquid has been spread to the edges of the pan.

3.  Add a bit of sun dried tomato, the sautéed mushrooms, chives and salt and pepper.  Fold over the edges of your omelette and serve with the sweet potato.

so satisfying yet high in protein and low in fat.

Tilapia served with peppers, onions and olives

Ingredients-

2 Tbsp Olive oil
4 6-ounce Tilapia fillets
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
2 red bell peppers, sliced thin
1 onion, sliced thin
1/2 cup pitted green olives
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice

Directions:

1. Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large non stick skillet over medium high heat.

2.  Season the fish with salt and pepper on each side. Cook until opaque (about 4 minutes per side)

3. Meanwhile, in a second skillet, heat the remaining oil over medium high heat.  Cook the onion and the peppers, stirring often, until tender.  About 8 minutes.

4.  Stir the olives, parsley, lime juice, salt and pepper to taste into the cooked onions and red peppers. Serve the vegetables over top the cooked Tilapia.

Lemongrass Noodle Soup with Edamame lunch

lemongrass noodle soup-

Ingredients:

5 cups chicken or turkey stock (preferably homemade)
1 stalk fresh lemongrass, broken in half
2 kaffir lime leaves
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 2inch piece of ginger, cut in half
1 tsp. fish sauce
1 tsp. hot chili sauce
4 ounces dry rice noodles
1/2 cup shiitake mushrooms
2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste
1 lime cut into quarters for squeezing

Directions:

1. In a saucepan over high heat, combine the broth, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, garlic, and ginger.  Bring to a boil.

2.  Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.  Discard the ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, ginger and garlic.

3.  Add the fish sauce, chili sauce, mushrooms  and noodles, cook until noodles are tender (about 2-5 minutes).  Stir in the scallions.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

4. Divide the soup among 4 bowls, top with bean sprouts and basil, squeeze lime juice in to taste. 


Edamame-

Ingredients-

Frozen organic edamame
salt

Directions-

Follow the package directions.  Bring water to a boil, add edamame, cook uncovered for 3-5 minutes, drain and toss liberally with salt.  You eat the beans inside, not the pod (just in case someone has never eaten this!)



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The Bottlehood..the worst kept secret on Etsy

I have become a fan, addict and good customer of the folks at The Bottlehood....I want to let you in on the worst-kept secret on Etsy. Our cupboard is now home to wineglass tumblers and coke bottle juice glasses. Sturdy, pretty and interesting. Recycled glasses from wine, beer, soda and liquor bottles.  According to Bottlehood.com a glass bottle takes more than 4000 years to decompose in a landfill! I would much rather re-use if it can't be recycled. Glass will be with us for a while, so until there is an alterntive that isn't plastic...I am with the folks at Bottlehood::

On my table, a soda in a re-purposed wine bottle reflecting the winter sun!

Our juice glasses.....

BottleHood was founded by a couple of folks in San Diego who took their concerns for the environment and decided to “do” something about it. BottleHood is a collective team of neighborhood craftspeople (jeweler, weaver, graphic designer) who share an interest in today's environment.

BottleHood has taken a stand on keeping bottles which have no California Redemption Value (CRV) out of California’s landfills or sent overseas to be recycled.


It  is just really all about theneighborhood and helping extend the life of discarded glass.

Absolut Vodka bottle (now a vase)

All BottleHood glassware was created from wine, liquor, beer, soda and water bottles from local San Diego restaurants, bars and events.



No part of the bottle goes to waste....jewelry, beads, spoonrests,  etc.   etsy recycled glass jewelry and etsy BottleHood beads