Pumpkin Soup Recipe
A warm bowl of soup is always comforting, especially on a cold, rainy day or when we have fallen ill with a cold or the flu and feel miserable. We all have sweet memories of our mothers preparing chicken soup whenever we were sick, and there is a valid reason why.
It is proven that soup has a soothing effect on both the mood and the body. I absolutely encourage YOU to incorporate it into your diet more often.
At home, we have some sort of soup as our dinner table twice a week, and I always have enough left over for my lunch the following day.
Here are some of the reasons why I incorporate a healthy, low calorie, low-fat soup into my family's diet:
A healthy soup, whether vegetarian or with meat, is a good vessel to provide our bodies with a boost of nutrients and essential fibre that ease the work digestive system and regulate the blood sugar.
Soups consist of a good amount of water or broth and this will help the stomach feel full without consuming too many calories.
It is a way to provide our bodies with essential vitamins and anti-oxidants.
It helps relieve the digestive system especially when it is troubled because they are easily broken down and absorbed.
Having a healthy bowl of a soup 4 or 5 times a day, for 5 days may assist in weight loss to help you get into that pair of jeans which is just that bit too tight. The consumption of calories may not exceed 1200 calories per day based on consuming only low calorie and non-dairy soups.
Bone broth-based soups are rich in collagen which is beneficial for the both younger looking skin and relieving aching joints.
Servings: 6
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Start to finish: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
1 1/2 kilograms pumpkins
1 onion
1 1/2 stem celery
8 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
1 cup almond milk
1 bay leaf
Salt to taste
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon caraway seed, powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon olive oil
Method:
* Peel, deseed and cube the pumpkin.
* Cut the onions and the celery and sauté in the olive oil for 1 minute.
* Add the cube pumpkin and bay leaf and sauté for a few minutes.
* Add the stock, nutmeg, salt, and almond milk, cover and let it cook for about 20 minutes until the pumpkin is soft.
* Discard the bay leaf and transfer to a blender, puree and adjust the salt.
* Place the seeds in a frying pan with 1 teaspoon olive oil and add the paprika and caraway seed powder and toast for 1 minute.
* Pour the soup in a bowl and enjoy topped with the toasted seeds and chili oil.
Tips:
* You can follow this technique to make a huge range of creamed vegetable soups.
* Soups can be portioned and frozen for up to 6 months.
Per Serving: 222 Calories; 12g Fat (48.1% calories from fat); 5g Protein; 23g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fibre; 12mg Cholesterol; 2881mg Sodium.