Soup for the Sick Soul

When the temperature changes start rolling around, and almost everyone around you is coughing or sniffling left and right... how could you possible avoid getting sick. Honestly, I could've caught it from anywhere-- in the office, on the metro, maybe even while walking around the city. Who knows? Somehow, that thought came off as scary to me this time around. After a year of working around epidemiologists and health scientists in the public health field, I am now seeing the spread of germs in a whole new light. It's amazing and also horrifying how quickly these infectious illnesses can travel from person to person. I also recently read an article that talks about how even the healthiest person can fall ill when pathogens that disguise themselves to resemble normal cells in the body are able to enter and bypass all the barriers that would usually keep them out (i.e. cilia, mucous membranes, tears, sweat, stomach acid, etc.). Once they sneak in, that's when it all starts going downhill *cue battle scene of our white blood cells versus the big bad germs*

Naturally, I ended up going to the doctor's after trying to sweat it out for a week (fail), and found out that I have adenovirus, which is an upper respiratory infection that seems to hit people in varying degrees. I'm now into week 2 of not eating properly (decreased appetite and sore/inflamed throat makes it hard to swallow), so I was hoping soup would do the trick. Or maybe I should say, stew, to be more specific. Below is a recipe from an all-inclusive vegan cookbook (includes ideas for breakfast, smoothies, lunch, dinner, snacks, dessert, etc.) that I have been experimenting with, and one particular stew stood out to me since it seems fitting for the fall season right now:

Chickpea Butternut Squash Stew
Serves 4

• 1 Medium Butternut Squash (I just used the pre-cut package from Trader Joe's!)
• 1 (15 oz.) Can of Chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 (14 oz.) Can of Crushed Tomatoes
• 1 Yellow Onion, chopped
• 1 Tsp of Minced Garlic
• 3 Cups of Low-Sodium Vegetable Broth
• 1/4 Cup of Golden Raisins
• 2 Tbsp of Coconut Oil
• Salt / Pepper to taste

How to make:

1. First, you scoop out the 2 Tbsp of Coconut Oil and heat over medium-low in a large pot.
2. Once the Coconut Oil has heated up and starts to crackle, add in the chopped onion first to let it cook and turn translucent, then add in the minced garlic-- in this order (never cook the garlic first, because garlic cooks fast and there's a higher chance you'll burn it!)
3. Then pour in the 3 cups of Vegetable Broth, and add in all the other ingredients-- Chickpeas, Butternut Squash, Golden Raisins, and Crushed Tomatoes
4. Add Salt and Pepper to taste.
5. Turn up the heat and bring to rolling boil!
6. Then bring down to simmer and leave it be for about an hour or so.

...and here is a picture of the three servings leftover (I had some from the freshly-made batch for dinner and tupperwared the rest):

It says this recipe serves 4, but a stew like this won't take a lot to fill you, so I would say this could maybe even yield enough for 6! All these hearty ingredients will make you feel full and nourished-- not to mention taste-wise, the buttery flavor of the chickpeas go really well with the rich and sweet flavors of the butternut squash. Through this stew, however, I discovered that I actually don't like the taste of tomatoes all that much; I found the tart (sour?) taste to be very overpowering, and interestingly, the golden raisins also added to that tart effect too... I still blame it all on the tomatoes, though, so not including those next time. I added in some agave nectar with a dash of almond milk to dilute the taste a bit. Don't judge, improvising is what cooking is all about!

Overall, it came out well and I would make this again with a few tweaks here and there. Give it a try! The bright orange color of the stew also makes for a nice fall-themed visual, so make it for yourself, a sick loved one, or friends to share with. Happy Autumn!