I have been following chef Frank Giglio on Twitter and always find his perspective and recipes very interesting for a number of reasons. He is a classically trained chef and was also very involved in the raw vegan food movement for a number of years. I find he and his wife Camille (aka SuperGojiGirl) to be a great examples of people that are true to their own path towards health even if it means changing/growing into beliefs that better serve what is good for their own bodies. Too often I come across people that sacrifice their personal health for an idea of how humans "should" eat (vegan, vegetarian, "dairy is the devil", protein with every meal, fat free, etc). They are obviously suffering yet unwilling to bend to make changes towards better health. I recognize it because I have been there myself and each time I adjust/make changes I feel so grateful in the end that I can share my discoveries with others. Anyway, this past week I participated in Frank's Food Challenge. I offered a list of items I had in bulk in my kitchen and in turn, he created a recipe and emailed it to me. Below is the list of ingredients I had along with the recipe created. I made the vegan version of this recipe which could easily be converted to a non vegan meal by using a chicken/beef stock and adding meat into the soup. So here goes the Food Challenge! I had in my kitchen:
Shallots, Garlic, Acorn Squash, and Greens (Winter Bor Kale)
Fresh Nettles (picked by these two cutie kids Isaac and Nina):
The health benefits of nettles are plentiful. Nettles are a kidney tonic with diuretic properties that allow for the release of water soluble toxins. They provide relief from the allergies that plague many in the spring, because they improve our resistance to pollens and molds. Nettles enrich the blood and ameliorate high blood pressure levels. From a Chinese medicine perspective, they build overall chi—or energy flow in the body. And nettles are an adrenal tonic, boosting our ability to handle the stressors that life presents with more vigor and equanimity.
How to Eat:
Nettles can be used much like spinach or any other mild tasting green. However the sting of the stinging nettles must be disabled before the nettles are consumed. This can be done through cooking, pureeing, juicing, or blending. The stinger is also deactivated when the nettle leaves are dried or powdered.
How to Harvest:
Nettles are only good to eat when they are young and tender, before they flower. When gathering, unless you are well trained at avoiding the stingers, wear long pants, long sleeves, and rubber gloves. You can use scissors to cut them and carry them home in a paper bag or a basket. Once in the kitchen, use gloves or tongs to handle the leaves. Before you cut any leaves form their stems, be sure that you have properly identified the plant.
AND FINALLY~
Here is the recipe Frank offered:
Peel half the acorn squash and dice into small pieces...set aside.
Take 2 shallots (about the size of two golfballs worth) Peel and slice into rounds.
Slice a few garlic cloves
In a half gallon sauce pan, warm ghee on medium high heat. Lightly saute the shallots and sliced garlic until they begin to brown. Once they take on a nice caramel like color, add roughly 4-5 cups of stock or water. (See stock recipe below).
Add in a bay leaf, as well as a quarter cup of nettle leaf (I used fresh nettles and added about 5-7 nettle leaves). Allow to simmer for for 15 minutes.
Once the liquid becomes nicely flavored by the nettle, add the chopped squash and a large handful of the greens. Continue to simmer until the squash is cooked thru. Season to taste with salt and lemon zest. Serve with spelt tortillas (which I did and it was great). I followed Frank's recipe and used coconut oil for the vegan version.
And Voila!!!
YUM. I absolutely loved this soup. It was easy to make, my whole family and even my neighbor tried it and loved it~Thanks Frank!
Here is the stock recipe I used:
Homemade Easy Vegetable Broth ingredients:
4 tablespoons ghee
4 onions cut into large chunks
4 shallots cut in half
4 celery stalks sliced
3 teaspoons sea salt
2-3 tablespoons thyme _
1 bunch parsley
4 quarts of water
preparation:
Heat oil on low/medium heat in a large pot and sauté onions, shallots, garlic, celery and thyme for 7 minutes. Add salt, water and parsley. Bring to a boil and lower heat and simmer for 1-2 hours. Strain and store in glass jars until ready to use.
Makes 4 quarts (enough to store and use some later for other recipes)
