Well, it looks like the cold and flu season are officially upon us. This week it felt like half of the people I know are sick. Thankfully Bryan and I have been able to stay well… so far. We have been taking at least a spoonful of homemade unsweetened elderberry syrup a day and making sure we get plenty of sleep and healthy food. I have also been making lots of soup made with homemade bone broth. This week I made Onion and Garlic Soup, or my own personal Sick Busting Super Soup! This soup is GREAT for when you are sick or for when you want to avoid getting sick! Here’s why…

Homemade bone broth:

We all know that chicken soup is wonderful for a cold, but did you know the main reason is because of the broth? Bone broth/stock contains tons of essential minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. Not only is it loaded with these and lots of other minerals, these minerals are also in a form that the body can easily absorb. Broth/stock also contains gelatin, which has been found to be helpful in the treatment of various diseases. It also aids in digestion, which means that instead of spending energy on digesting difficult things, your body can spend energy fighting whatever little illness you are struggling with.

PS – Here’s a little trick for you: add a little vinegar to the water when you make bone broths/stocks to help extract the calcium and improve the nutritional value of your stock.

Onion:

Onions have been used for their healing powers for centuries all over the world. According to this site “Early American settlers used wild onions to treat colds, coughs, and asthma, and to repel insects. In Chinese medicine, onions have been used to treat angina, coughs, bacterial infections and breathing problems.” Onions are rich in a number of minerals and vitamins - Shallots and Green onions, in particular, contain high amounts of vitamin A and antioxidants. All onions have antibacterial and antifungal properties, which makes them truly perfect for when you are sick. Onions can help break up mucus and aide the immune system.

Garlic:

In our household we consider garlic the king of the spice cupboard AND the king of the medicine cabinet as well. This popular food is incredibly beneficial for health and overall well being. The benefits of garlic truly deserve a blog post all their own, but for now let me just give you the short story. Garlic contains substances which are potent anti-viral, anti-fungal and antibiotic agents. They stimulate the immune system and aide in fighting off a variety of diseases. Garlic has even been found to be effective in treating antibiotic resistant diseases.

PS – A little tip, if you leave the garlic at room temperature for about 15 minutes after you crush/chop it you will trigger a chemical reaction in the garlic that maximizes the health benefits.

Simple Onion and Garlic Soup:

3-4 quarts of homemade bone broth 6 (or more) onions (use a variety of different kinds to maximize the flavor and health benefits) 3 (or more) cloves of garlic, sliced 2 (or more) cloves of garlic, crushed 1 additional clove of garlic for each person you are serving the soup to Cut the onions however you want. I like to mix it up, by chopping some, slicing some and quartering some. I think this gives the soup more texture which I like. But, if you want to just chop them all that will work great too.

In a large pot sauté the onions until they are soft and just a bit translucent. Then add the sliced garlic and sauté for another few minutes until the garlic is just softened. Next add in the bone broth and crush 2 (or more) cloves of garlic into your soup. Allow this to cook for a bit (especially if your broth was cold).

Just before serving add one crushed clove of raw garlic to each bowl, and then pour the hot soup into the bowl. Serve with sliced green onions to garnish and homemade bread to dip.

This is a very simple soup, there’s not a lot of substance to it, but served with some warm bread it can make a wonderfully warming meal for a cold winter day or for whenever anyone in your family is sick or wants to avoid getting sick. In fact I think I will make up another batch this weekend.

Rejoicing in the journey - Beth Stedman

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