Izelle Hoffman spills the soup on winter germs!

She's our lifestyle chef, mindful eating guide, and good friend. She joins us every Tuesday to chat about all things food, life, and everything in between, to make sure we are the healthiest versions of ourselves! 

This week, with the chill in the air and the craving for hearty, warm meals building - Izelle chats to Danny all about garlic, its healing properties, and she shares one of her Mindful Eating recipes to beat the winter germ blues! 

Listen here:

Creamy Garlic and Butterbean Soup with Oven-roasted Chickpeas

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Servings: 8–10

2 Tbsp olive oil

4 x 410 g cans butterbeans, drained and processed or blended until smooth

8 cups unsweetened almond milk (I prefer the unsweetened one from Almond Breeze)

2 heaped tsp crushed garlic

4 tsp almond flour

5 tsp Oryx desert salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 Tbsp dried rosemary

6 Tbsp raw honey

zest and juice of 2 lemons

100 g spinach, chopped

4 celery stalks, chopped

4 large carrots, sliced

2 handfuls of chopped fresh Italian parsley

Oven-roasted chickpeas

2 x 410 g cans chickpeas, drained

1 Tbsp olive oil

½ tsp Oryx desert salt

¼ tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp paprika

pinch of dried parsley

1. Spray a large saucepan with non-stick cooking spray. Add all of the soup ingredients and bring to the boil over low heat, stirring regularly. Cook for about 45 minutes until the vegetables are soft and the soup is lovely and thick.
2. While the soup is cooking, preheat the oven to 220 °C and spray a baking tray with non-stick cooking spray, or line with baking paper.
3. Rinse the chickpeas and pat dry with paper towel.
4. Place the chickpeas in a mixing bowl and stir in the oil, salt, black pepper, paprika and parsley.
5. Spread the chickpeas on the greased baking tray and bake for 15–25 minutes until crispy.
6. Serve the soup sprinkled with the oven-roasted chickpeas.

Why we are using the following ingredients:

Oryx Salt

What is the purpose of adding salt during cooking? It’s to enhance flavour, right? So why not start by using a good-quality salt to do the job? Sun-dried and unrefined with no additives will bring out the best in your food in the healthiest way possible.

Raw Honey

Salt needs sweet and vice versa to enhance taste and flavour. So when you add sweetness, choose a sweetness that has a healing effect on your body and health. Raw honey is antiviral and anti-fungal, and contains powerful antioxidants. Its helps ward off allergies, stabilise blood pressure and balance blood sugar levels. It also boosts the immune system and promotes digestive health.

Olive Oil

We all have our reasons why we prefer certain oils, but without a doubt my oil base of choice is olive oil, specifically for its amazing health benefits. Olive oil helps reduce inflammation and prevent osteoporosis, and is essential for bone health because it assists in the absorption of calcium and the mineralisation of bones, all of which are qualities I look for in a product, given my hip dysplasia and related joint pain.

Garlic

Antiviral, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory, garlic assists in detoxification and boosting the metabolism, and is a natural dewormer that kills parasites. I use both black and white fresh garlic, and keep dried garlic powder and flakes in my pantry.

Lemons

Although themselves acidic, citrus fruits such as lemons and limes have an alkalising effect on the body. They are also loaded with vitamin C. Vitamin C content is always highest when the fruit is freshly cut. A squeeze of love in the shape of a lemon or lime, who knew?

Ground Black Pepper

Why do we add pepper to our food? When I ask this during cooking demonstrations, I always get the most interesting answers, but mostly people cannot tell me why they add pepper to their meals. My reason? It increases nutrient absorption and improves digestion, so you can get the most out of every meal, every time.

Paprika

Smoked or sweet, paprika is antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and high in vitamin C. It helps ease arthritis and joint pain, and aids in iron and antioxidant absorption.

Crushed Garlic

Antiviral, antifungal and anti-inflammatory, garlic assists in detoxification and boosting the metabolism, and is a natural dewormer that kills parasites. I use both black and white fresh garlic, and keep dried garlic powder and flakes in my pantry.

Parsley

Parsley is so much more than just a garnish; it packs an unsuspecting nutritional punch. High in vitamins A and C and calcium, it is anti-inflammatory, improves bone health, is a blood purifier and boosts the immune system.

You can get last week's podcast and recipe here: How lack of sleep can make you drunk!

You can also buy your copy of the award-winning 'Mindful Eating' cookbook here!

Catch up with Danny's brand new JacPod channel and all of her podcasts here: