This month’s Go Ahead Honey, It’s Gluten-Free event is focused on foods that bring healing to your mind, body and soul. Hosted by Maggie over at She Let Them Eat Cake , this is a great opportunity to start the New Year off with some amazingly delicious and wonderfully healing recipes.
As mentioned in my Cranberry-Orange Wassail post from last week I have been battling a head-cold and thus, have been loading up on yummy healing foods to help me move past this as quickly as possible.
After a long week loaded with church events, school events and personal events, my body finally gave in Sunday morning. My loving husband and wonderful children left me be and I managed to rest for a whopping 48 hours thereafter.
When I finally mustard the will to get out of bed, I knew I wanted something warm and soothing…oddly enough, the first thing that came to mind was not my easy egg drop soup, which is generally my go-to get-better-quick solution, no…I wanted cheddar bacon soup.
Cheddar bacon? Yummy, but not something someone on a dairy-free diet normally desires.
So, my creative mind began to flow.
How can I accomplish this in a way that is safe for my family, positively delicious, really cheesy yet nutritious enough to push me past this bug that weighed me down so firmly?
Then I remembered, I had a stash of roasted squash in my freezer. That would do the trick!
After much tinkering, I was glad to come up with a solution that killed my craving and helped me return to work and my family happy and healthy as ever (if you don’t count the sniffles that just won’t go away)…
To match the needs of this month’s event…this soup is loaded with healing ingredients:
Squash: Winter squash is known for carotene properties and offer a protective effect against many cancers, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. This recipe would work well is pumpkin, acorn, Hubbard or butternut squash, though I used roasted pumpkin in mine.
Chicken broth: chicken broth is the go-to secret weapon for moms world-wide. Having been used as a remedy for the common cold for centuries, scientific evidence now shows that chicken broth helps to clear a stuffy nose by inhibiting inflammation of the cells in the nasal passages. Now that’s good stuff.
Onions contain powerful anti-oxidants and are also natural anti-histamines and anti-inflammatory.
Palm oil has been shown to protect against many common health problems and to boost immunity.
As far as the bacon…well….the protein in bacon can help you feel full longer and apparently bacon is a good source of choline which can help prevent against heart problems. While the fat level in bacon keeps me from eating it every day, undoubtedly the high-quality stuff isn’t all that bad for you and well…it tastes good!
While there is not an ounce of cheese to be found, this recipe undoubtedly leads to one of the creamiest versions of cheddar bacon soup I have ever enjoyed. All in all, this soup is loaded with wonderful nutrients meant to help heal your body and warm your soul.
May this be just one of many recipes to bring health and happiness to you and your family all year long.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 16 oz Smoked Bacon
- 1 c Butter-Flavored Palm Shortening
- 1 Medium Yellow Onion, diced
- 3 Cloves Garlic, minced
- 8 c Roasted Squash, cubed or pureed
- 4c (32 oz) Chicken Broth (Pacific Naturals is organic and gluten-free, or you can use your own homemade version)
- 1 Tbs Smoked Paprika
- 2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- 1 Can Whole-Fat Coconut Milk
- Chives for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Cook bacon until crisp. I prefer to bake mine at 425f on parchment-lined cookie sheets. This has always proved to be the best way to achieve even results. Drain oil and allow to cool.
- In medium stock pot, warm palm shortening until melted. Add in onion and garlic, cooking until lightly caramelized. Stir in squash and cook until warm. Add in broth, paprika, salt and pepper. Bring to simmer over medium heat, cook for an additional 15 minutes.
- Puree soup by using hand blender or adding in small batches to your Vitamix. or other blender. Return to pot. Crumble bacon into bits. Stir in ½ bacon and canned coconut milk, allow to cook for an additional 5-10 minutes.
- Serve warm, using the remaining bacon and added chives for garnish.
- Makes 8-10 servings.
Awesome, Sunny! I want this soup right now! And to know that it has so many health bennies? What a bonus!
And please keep taking care of yourself, missy! 🙂
xoxo,
Shirley
Thank you, Shirley! xoxo
The cup of shortening plus bacon and full fat coconut milk sounds like a lot of fat. I’ve had my gallbladder removed and have to watch my fat intake. This sounds delicious, but wonder if i would be able to enjoy it.
🙂 You are right, it does sound like a lot. But when you consider that it is divided between 8-10 servings, that the remainder of the ingredients have virtually no fat, reality is that there is just over 1 ounce of fat per serving. Good, short-chained monounsaturated fats at that.
I understand your concerns, especially with your gallbladder, but as far as creamy, cheesy soups go…this one is on the low side of fat content.
xoxo