Balanced Living
October Unprocessed Challenge and a Delicious Soup Recipe!
Posted by Arja on October 4 in Soups and Stews
It’s been a while since I posted. Way too long in fact. I have a 22 month old and virtually no childcare, so trying balance working from home and taking care of a toddler has proven to be more of a challenge than I ever could have anticipated. My son is not a difficult child by any stretch of the imagination, however, it is hard to cram 6 hours of work into a 2 hour nap window. By the time I clean up from breakfast and lunch, unload/load the dishwasher, perhaps throw in a load of laundry and maybe even make a call and book an appointment that window has shrunk considerably. Add into that the time it takes to sit down, re-focus my brain from mommy to nutritionist and there’s just not enough time left. I’m working on it. Trust.
There are a lot of great things happening in the world of health and nutrition right now. Food bloggers are putting more and more of their focus on sourcing quality, local ingredients and cooking healthy, family-friendly meals. This means that a person can surf the internet and come away with some great recipes and ideas for food they can easily make in their own kitchens. My focus for my own family has been on planning. Planning is what helps us eat a healthy, home cooked meal at night, and planning is what is helping me have us eat it at a reasonable hour. That has not necessarily been the case for the last 22 months, so I’m pretty pleased about this turn of events. It’s not always easy, but it’s totally worth it when hubby and I can actually sit down after Gabe is in bed and RELAX.
I’m trying to have us follow something called October Unprocessed Challenge. This was an idea that first came to me via http://www.simplebites.com, a great food blogger located in Quebec. The goal is to spend a month (or whatever reasonable period of time you can commit to) focusing all your energy on eating a completely unprocessed diet. Basically, if it’s refined, cut it, and if you can produce it in your own kitchen then you shouldn’t buy it. There is a bit more to it, so if you’re interested check out http://www.eatingrules.com/2011/09/october-unprocessed-2011/.
Eating like this is not a huge stretch for my family, but it does make me think a little bit more about ingredients and shortcuts and certainly forces me to alter recipes a bit more. Snacks for my toddler have been challenging, especially portable snacks. My reliance on those handy PC Organics cereal bars has been put on the back burner. I spent my Sunday cooking and doing some prep for the week so that lunches for hubby and I would also be easier. So far so good. Last night I cooked up a favourite soup that not only fits the October Unprocessed challenge, but also with Meatless Mondays. It’s warming and delicious. I hope you enjoy it too.
Thai Carrot Ginger Soup
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp ginger, chopped
2 tsp red thai curry paste
2 lb carrots, grated or very thinly sliced
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp honey
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper
¾ cup coconut milk
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
Heat oil in large saucepan on medium. Add onion, garlic, & ginger. Cook gently until very fragrant (5 min.) Add curry paste and cook 30 seconds.
Add carrots, stock, honey, lemon juice, salt & pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat & simmer covered until carrots are tender (15-20 mins).
Puree soup in blender or with immersion blender. Return to heat. Add coconut milk and chopped cilantro and heat for 5 mins.
