When winter hits, the body craves warm, nourishing foods. This winter squash soup is a great quick, easy way to feed yourself for a few days or a lovely meal for the entire family. Pair it with your favorite grain and/or a sautéed green for a well-rounded meal.

The ingredients in this soup have incredible healing properties like antibacterial, anti-aging, killing cancer cells, boosting the libido, preventing heart disease, and more. If you are interested in learning more about these ingredients’ functional purposes, scroll below the instructions.

If you just want some delicious soup, here you go:

Ingredients 

  • 1 Medium winter squash like kabocha, or butternut, if you use acorn, or another small squash you’ll need 2-3
  • 2 coconuts, meat blended with coconut water or 1 can full fat coconut milk
  • 2 tbsp olive or sesame oil
  • 1-3 tsp cloves
  • 1 tsp cardamom 
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • ½ -1 tsp nutmeg
  • 2 or more cups of vegetable broth
  • Cinnamon sprinkled on top

Instructions

  1. Two ways to cook the squash:

If using oven

    • preheat to 400 degrees
    • Cut squash and remove seeds, cube or leave skin on
    • Place squash in a glass pan , skin side up
    • Add 2 inches of clean filtered water
    • Place in the oven, cook for 20 minutes then check by poking squash with a fork. Check every 20 minutes until tender.

If using pressure cooker

    • Cut squash in ½ or 3rds, and remove seeds
    • Place squash in pressure cooker , skin side up
    • Add 3+ inches of clean filtered water
    • Set to high pressure and cook for 15 min, allow pressure to release naturally
  2. Once the squash is cooked, remove the skin and set aside. 
  3. Using a pan on the stove top, preferably cast iron, on medium heat warm up the oil.
  4. Add in all of the spices and stir until they smell fragrant. I give a range of spices because everyone’s tastes are different. If you are unsure about these ingredients start low and you can always add more in after you blend it up.
  5. Add in the cooked squash and add a pinch of sea salt if you desire.
  6. Sauté the squash in the oil and spice mixture for about 5 minutes on low-medium heat.
  7. Place the coconut milk in a high speed blender. Add the squash/spice mixture. Blend until smooth. You may need/want to add water or vegetable stock for a smoother or thinner consistency. I like it slightly on the thick side.
  8. Return to the stovetop to, add veggie broth one up at a time until you reach desired consistency heat up.
  9. Sprinkle with cinnamon and serve!
  10. Adding a few drops of pumpkin seed oil to the top makes for an extra burst of flavor.

 

Functional Benefits of the Ingredients

Food is a great way to celebrate and indulge our taste buds. It is also a great way to heal and protect our bodies. Here are some interesting facts about the ingredients.

All information comes from Healing Spices unless otherwise noted. 

Nutmeg

May help with:

  • Libido
  • Memory loss
  • Anxiety
  • Wrinkles: South Korean researchers found that nutmeg was one of the 6 spices out of 150 tested plants that can inhibit elastase, an enzyme that breaks down elastin. These are the protein fibers that keep skin youthful, taut, and flexible.
  • Contains antioxidants
  • Is anti-inflammatory
  • Has antibacterial properties
  • Due to myristicin content, shows to  induce apoptosis (cell death) in human leukaemia cells (1)
  • May help slow cognitive decline in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and promote the recovery of brain tissue following a stroke (2)
  • Has also been found to inhibit the growth of harmful strains of E. coli bacteria (3)

Cardamom

May help with: 

  • Blood clots
  • Colic
  • Colon cancer, by reducing inflammation, stopping cancer cells from dividing and killing cancer cells. 
  • Constipation
  • Diarrhea
  • Heart disease
  • Hypertension
  • Sinusitis
  • Stomachache
  • Ulcer
  • Research shows it relieved sinus headache, eased tender sinuses, reduces nasal secretions, and decreased nasal obstruction 
  • May alleviate asthma. Research shows that those using cardamom reduced steroid use by 36%.
  • Helps prevent bad breath

Cumin

May help with:

  • Epilepsy
  • Food Poisoning
  • Osteoporosis. Cumin showed to stop bone loss and those consuming it show to have greater bone density. In clinical trials its effects were comparable to that of the hormone estradiol however those taking estradiol  are at greater risk of heart disease and breast cancer.
  • Tuberculosis. Due to volatile oil and content of vitamins C and A cumin acts as a potent antioxidant that may help with cancer.
  • Studies found cumin prevented formation of colon tumors in rats fed cancer causing substances, reduced the risk of cervical cancer by 82% and significantly decreased incidence of stomach and liver cancer.
  • May help prevent type 2 Diabetes

Clove

May help with:

  • Bad breath
  • Blood clots: in clinical trials clove showed to be stronger than aspirin and equal to indomethacin as thinning medications that fight platelet aggregation.
  • Cancer: studies show that clove can stop cancer cells from multiplying in those with lung and skin cancer.
  • Cold sores
  • Food poisoning
  • Genital herpes: Thai researchers found that the Herpes simplex 2 virus couldn’t replicate in the presence of clove
  • Gum disease
  • Hepatitis C
  • Mosquito bites
  • Toothache
  • Ulcers
  • Infections: shows to fights bacteria and viruses including H. pylori

The information in this blog and on this site is not meant to cure, prevent, or treat any diseases. Nor does it substitute legal or medical advice.