Good Food News Archive - March 4, 2003

Article: Spring just around the corner?
Featured this week... SOUPS
Recipes: Minestrone soup, Basic vegetable stock

Article: Spring just around the corner?

I am writing on one of the coldest days of the winter, thinking to myself: "When will it ever end?" They say it hasn't been this cold in the early days of March since sometime in the 1930's. So, this week, I bring you comfort in the form of soups galore as well as a taste of summer with bright red strawberries. As we all anxiously await the spring thaw, thoughts of going out in shorts on that one day when it's a whopping 5 degrees (and it actually feels warm) crosses some of our minds. But the reality is that it's still cold season, so I offer you some tips on how to battle that evil cold.

The following "fight your cold" tips come from an article written by Lynn Grieger, published online at www.ivillagehealth.com/features/eatfor wellness/articles. Her article also includes some meal options, but I've just included the basics for you.

Take Care of Your Cold Diet
It's finally happened, even though you've tried to prevent it: You've caught a cold. With more than 200 different cold viruses on the loose, it's virtually impossible to not get sick at least once each year. Yet with the strategies in the Take Care of Your Cold Diet, you can reduce the duration of a cold by about half and also decrease the annoying side effects, like stuffy nose and sore throat. Here's how:

* Drinking water and other liquids will help loosen mucous secretions. Warm drinks in particular will increase your mucous flow, helping you to feel less stuffy. Drink lots of herbal tea and fruit juice.
* Fresh, whole foods raise your nutrient uptake. Fresh vegetables and fruits that can help your body heal faster.
* Chicken soup really can make you feel better! Try to eat soup on a daily basis while you're sick.
* Experts recommend getting 500 mg or more of vitamin C per day to help reduce the duration of a cold. Choose foods and drinks high in vitamin C to attack your cold with full force.

Healthy Dos and Don'ts
Do:
* Gargle with warm salt water several times each day to sooth sore throats
* Try a hot toddy made with hot water, honey and lemon to ease a cough
* Try sipping warm ginger tea throughout the day to relieve chest congestion. Grate 1-2 teaspoons of fresh ginger in a mug of just-boiled water, cover and steep 10-15 minutes. Strain and enjoy
* Consider using zinc gluconate lozenges or additional vitamin C to reduce the duration of a cold. (Be aware that some people experience nausea from this amount of zinc, and that lozenges should only be used for about a week at a time)
* Delsie also reminds you to use garlic in your cooking. It will keep you healthy and fight that cold.
Don't:
* Skip meals! Your body's energy and nutrient needs increase whenever you are sick or running a fever

* * *

This week we’ve decided to focus on comfort foods and springtime promise. When the winter seems to linger endlessly, we seem to need that warm bowl of soup to keep us warm, but also a little reminder of the warmth still to come. Some of you will get strawberries in your boxes this week, to do just that, give you a little taste of spring. Strawberries were very inexpensive this week and so they seemed the perfect treat. They are bright red and very juicy. Strawberries are a good source of vitamin C and are good for the intestinal tract. Some people tend to get hives from strawberries. A good way to avoid getting hives is to run hot water over them, then immediately follow this by running cold water over them. This process takes the fuzz off the outside of the berries, which is believed to cause the allergic reaction. Be sure to wash the strawberries whether or not you are allergic to the fuzz.
On the comfort side of things, we decided to feature soups. They are incredibly easy and you can virtually use anything you have lying around and make a great tasting soup.

Featured this week... SOUPS

Soup is the ultimate comfort food. Although soups are great for every season, we always seem to welcome a hot bowl of soup on a cold winter day. A bowl of soup is wholesome, comforting, the essence of simplicity says Deborah Madison. The Moosewood Collective says that “everbody loves soup. It fortifies the body and soothes the soul.”

We’ve decided to focus on soups in this issue to show you how far a pot of soup can go as well as give you some ideas on how to use what you have in your fridge to make a tasty soup. Most people find the most difficult challenge around preparing soup is flavouring. We’ve included a simple vegetable broth that can be used as the base of any soup instead of water. In any case, you can use either water, a homemade stock or a bouillon cube or canned stock to form the soup base.

Soups are super flexible. You can virtually use any vegetable you have to complement your soup and even leftovers work. Soup accomodates all kinds of variation and adaptation. Make a big pot and freeze for another day. Or store it in the fridge and you’ll find it tastes even better the next day.

Most soup recipes begin with sautéing onions, garlic, and/or spices in a little oil to release and mellow their strong flavours before adding liquids. If you want your soup to be both thick and also chunky, with distinct colours, textures and flavours, purée only a portion of it and then stir it back into the soup. And a final tip on soups, when adding quick cooking ingredients such as peas, mushrooms, fresh herbs, and greens, wait until your soup is just about ready so they don’t go mushy and keep their colours bright.

Recipes:

Minestrone Soup
Minestrone is a general name for a richly flavoured tomato-based soup that welcomes infinite variation, according to the season's taste and needs. It can appear as a light, fragrant vegetable soup on summer evenings, or most memorably, as a heavy stew for a cold winter day.

1 onion, finely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic
1 ½ cups chopped celery
1 ½ tbsp olive oil
4 cups chopped tomatoes with juice,
(or 6 oz. can tomato paste and 3 cups vegetable stock)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp basil
pinch fennel seed (optional)

2 cups or more, chopped:
carrot, zucchini, potato, broccoli, green beans, green pepper, cabbage, peas, corn, sauteeed mushrooms
1 cup cooked beans: lima, kidney, pinto, black, or garbanzo
handful of raw or cooked pasta (add near the end)
salt to taste
plenty of pepper (to taste)
tender greens, cut up
½ cup chopped parsley

Sauté onion, garlic and celery in oil until soft. Crush garlic. Add tomatoes, or tomato paste and stock, and herbs. Simmer the soup gently while you prepare whatever vegetables, beans, or grains you wish to add.
Minestrone welcomes leftover steamed vegetables, but if you are cooking them fresh, we suggest steaming or simmering them before adding to the soup because vegetables cooked with tomato will lose their colour. Parsley and tender greens will keep their colour and not be overcooked if you add them just a few minutes before serving.

After combining all the ingredients, bring the soup to a boil, simmer breifly, and correct the seasonings. If you like, garnish each bowl with a spoonful of Parmesan cheese.

Makes about 10 cups - all to the good because it's even better the next day. Serves 6 generously. From: The New Laurel’s Kitchen

Basic Vegetable Stock
10 cups water
2 onions, quartered
2 sweet potatoes or 4 carrots, peeled and quartered
2 potatoes, scrubbed and thickly sliced
2 celery stalks and/or a cup or mushroom stems
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 fresh parsley sprigs
1 bay leaf
4 allspice berries (optional)
4 whole black peppercorns
½ teaspoon salt

Combine all the ingredients for your stock in a large soup pot, cover and bring to a boil on high heat. Lover the heat and, still covered, simmer for about 1 hour.

Allow to cool slightly and then strain the stock through a sieve or colander. Use it immediately, or refrigerate it in a covered container for up to four days, or freeze it for up to six months.
From: Moosewood Restaurants - New Classics