Snuggle In Soup

The summer glow has disappeared, the leaves are shades of orange, yellow and brown, the mornings are crisp, the nights are cool and you find yourself wanting to snuggle under the covers just a little while longer … yep Winter is here.

With the change of seasons you may also note your change of taste buds. No longer are you craving fresh cold juicy fruits and crisp light salads. Your body wants heavier, warmer forms of nourishment and rustic, wholesome vegetables. Thinks potatoes, parsnips, pumpkins, turnips & fennel.

With your winter cravings in full swing and at the forefront of my mind, I decided to create a recipe to warm you from the inside out. It’s robust and flavoursome and will have you quite happily turning down the cocktail and tapas invite this weekend. So grab a bowl, a book and a blanket and snuggle in for the night.

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Winter Roast Soup with Coconut Bacon

Ingredients – Winter Roast Soup

• 2 potatoes, roasted
• 2 carrots, roasted
• 1/2 butternut squash, roasted
• 1 leek leaf, roasted
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 vegetarian stock cube
• 2 cups filtered water (you may need a little extra to thin out your soup if necessary)
• 1/4 cup shredded coconut
• 1 Tbsp Nutritional yeast
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2-3 sprigs of rosemary & thyme
• ½ cup cashews

Method

1. Put all the ingredients into the Vitamix 2L container in the order listed and secure the lid.
2. Select Variable 1. Turn the machine on and quickly increase the speed to 10, then override to High.
3. Use tamper to effectively press the ingredients into the blades if required whilst processing.
4. Blend for 3-6 minutes or until desired temperature is reached.
5. Stop the machine and serve.

Ingredients – Coconut Bacon

• 3 cups coconut flakes
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp tamari
• 1 Tbsp Liquid smoke
• ½ tsp paprika or salt and pepper to season
• salt n pepper

Method

1. Mix together in a bowl maple syrup, tamari and liquid smoke. Add coconut flakes to your mix and stir well.
2. Spread coconut flakes evenly over a baking tray lined with baking paper
3. Season over the top with paprika, salt and pepper
4. Bake on low heat in the oven for approx. 10-15 minutes depending on your oven. Be sure to keep a close eye on them as they can burn quickly and your mix will be ruined.
5. Remove from oven when brown and slightly crisp and leave to cool. Coconut Bacon will continue to crisp once cooled.
6. Garnish your soup with crispy coconut bacon – yum!

Go with the Seasons!

Do you know that our bodies are so intuitive that they actually crave particular nutrients found in seasonal produce? How clever is that? So my body actually knows it wants more warming foods for the cooler months.

Fresh seasonal produce is not only better for our bods and our taste buds but it is also better for your pocket and better for the environment.

Do yourself a favour and this weekend hit the local farmers market and pick up some delicious, fresh, seasonal produce. Above is my Winter Produce guide to help get you started.

I want to know know where you find your local fresh produce? Give a shout out in the comments below to those hard working harvesters and share your secret with the Raw Blend community.

Happy Hunting!