Heart-Protective Carrot-Ginger Soup with Chives

The following recipe is from The Great Cholesterol Myth Cookbook by Jonny Bowden, Stephen Sinatra, and Deidre Rawlings.

Tangy, tasty, and warming from the inside out, the combination of carrots with ginger will delight not only your taste buds but your entire digestive system. This soup is packed with the antioxidants vitamin A and beta-carotene, together with tons of fiber and B-complex vitamins, it doesn’t get better than this for high-energy, nutrient dense soup.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or coconut oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 large carrots, chopped
• 2 cups chopped butternut squash, skin on
• 5 cups vegetable stock
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, Celtic or sea
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger, peeled
• 1/4 teaspoon each ground cumin, coriander powder, and garlic powder
• 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 6 tablespoons plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

Instructions:

Melt the oil in a large pot. Add the onions and cook for several minutes over medium heat until they begin to sweat. Add the carrots and butternut squash and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, salt, ginger, cumin, and coriander and garlic powders. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, about 15 to 20 minutes, or until you can pierce the pieces easily with a fork.

Purée the soup in a blender or food processor with the parsley. Serve with 1 tablespoon of yogurt in each bowl and top with fresh chives.

Yield: 6 servings

Note: Ginger is a stimulating herb that gets the blood flowing and the circulation going. Because of this, it can make you feel warm when nothing else seems to do the trick.