One of my old comfort foods was Campbell’s Tomato Soup.  Especially great (so I thought) on a night when I would get home from a long day of seeing patients and not feel like cooking.  Or on a cold evening, plop it in a pan, and instant heart warmer. Then I read the ingredients (taken directly off the can):
TOMATO PUREE (WATER, TOMATO PASTE), HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUPWHEAT FLOUR, WATER, SALT, POTASSIUM CHLORIDE, FLAVORING, CITRIC ACID, LOWER SODIUM NATURAL SEA SALT, ASCORBIC ACID (VITAMIN C), MONOPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE.
I was so disappointed that the second and third ingredients are terrible.  See One degree of change #4 about High Fructose Corn Syrup for more information.  And most wheat is genetically modified so that was out of my diet.  And “Flavoring”??? I searched the Campbell’s website and the only thing that I could find was that the “Flavoring” is undisclosed animal-based ingredients. What?  For all I know that is probably leftovers of meat production that would otherwise be waste.  A quick google search on many of the vegan blogs will reveal further speculation.  Campbell’s won’t confirm or deny this information, but will state that they do not have any vegan soups!  And that their only Vegetarian soup is there Vegetarian Vegetable Soup.  And the final upsetting ingredient is Monopotassium phosphate.  That, my friends, is a soluble salt of potassium and the dihydrogen phosphate ion which is used as a fertilizer, a food additive and a fungicide. It is a source of phosphorus and potassium. It is also a buffering agent. Wow!  The same ingredient that is used to make fertilizer and fungicide is in my soup.  Yummo!  Now you know why I get on my “soup” box!

BPA Free cans and bottles. One of the purposes of last week’s blog was to prepare your pantry/cabinets for better choices. To top all of the above off, the cans themselves contain BPA.  BPA stands for bisphenol A. BPA is an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1960s. BPA is found in polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. Polycarbonate plastics are often used in containers that store food and beverages, such as water bottles.  Nothing wrong with that? The “wrong about that” is it is an endocrine disrupter.  This means that it interferes with the production, secretion, transport, action, function and elimination of natural hormones. BPA can imitate our body’s own hormones in a way that could be hazardous for health. Babies and young children are said to be especially sensitive to the effects of BPA.

Most products today are labelled with BPA Free logo’s.  This certainly makes it easier.  I do have a few cans in my pantry, all are BPA free.  Mostly I select the boxes which are “tetra pak containers” which are also BPA free and easy to recycle.

Since I spoiled your soup dreams, only fair to give you an easy soup recipe that you can make yourself!  In the One degree of change #6 I gave you a veggie a month list.  December was Acorn Squash.
Here is my recipe for Roasted Acorn Squash Soup!

Ingredients

  • 1 large organic acorn squash, cut in half, scoop out seeds and drizzle with olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon citrus infused olive oil, you can use just olive oil
  • 1/8 teaspoon fresh grated cinnamon stick, you can use what you have
  • 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan salt, or to taste
  • 1 medium organic yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 clove of elephant garlic, minced
  • 1 cups unsweetened coconut milk, you can use almond
  • 2 cups organic chicken broth

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
  2. Cut the acorn squash in half length-wise. Scoop out the seeds and discard them (or you can roast them like pumpkin seeds–they’re delicious!).
  3. Place both squash halves (prepped as described above) on a baking sheet, cut-side down. Roast the acorn squash for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the flesh is very soft. Use a spoon to remove the squash flesh from the skin; discard the skin.

4.Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until browned, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté an additional 2 minutes. Remove from heat. (I did put a splash of cooking sherry in the sauté pan at the end, but that is optional).

5.Add the squash, cinnamon, sautéed onion and garlic, coconut milk, and chicken broth to a large pot or deep metal bowl.  I used an immersion blender and blend it until it is completely smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, I use a dash of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes for an extra kick. Heat to desirable temperature.

I served it with a few slices of organic grass fed filet mignon and imported French camembert!

Restock your pantry/cabinets.  Your one degree of change is to begin your journey of eating clean!  No chemicals in your food or food containers.  Another reason why I recommend the Standard Process Purification Program.  Our next classes start January 12th & 13th in 2015!

Happy New Year!

Eat clean and green in 2015!

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