Immune Support Recipes

Apple Chai-Spice Oatmeal
Oats contain immune-specific carbohydrates that truly make them a great food for cold and flu season.  The ratio of water to oats is variable and depends on how soft and well-cooked you like your oatmeal.  Use this recipe as a leaping off point to discover all sorts of new oatmeal flavors!

Ingredients:
1 cup of thick-cut oats (if avoiding gluten, make sure to get oats the specify they are gluten-free)
2 cups of water
1/2 apple, diced
2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
1 piece ginger approxomately 1/2 inch long, grated
1 teaspoon ground coridander
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
pinch salt

Bring apple, spices, and water to a boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add oats, bring back to a boil. Turn down heat, and simmer until water has absorbed into oats, stirring frequently.

Banana Blueberry Smoothie
Smoothies are a delicious and sneaky way to get nutrients into reticent kids and adults alike.  Some can even mask the taste of fish oil and other supplements. Although blueberries truly are a superfood, try experimenting with other fruits and berries to taste. Its good to emphasize the berries and use tropical fruit like banana and mango in moderation, as they are much higher in sugar.

Blend the following until smooth:
1 frozen banana
1/2 cup blueberries (frozen is fine, but make sure to eat warm foods as well on cold days)
1/2 cup plain, whole milk,live-culture yogurt
1/2 cup milk, hemp, or almond milk
Optional:
1/4-1/2 cup ground oats (clean coffee grinders are perfect for this task)
1/4 cup ground walnuts, pumpkin, flax or chia seeds
1 scoop hemp or whey protein powder

Yields 2-3 servings

Immune Support Soup

Ingredients:
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1-5 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed (to taste)
1 tsp – 3 Tbl grated fresh ginger root (to taste)
Juice of ½ lemon
½ cup sliced Shiitake mushrooms
1 quart chicken, beef, or mushroom broth
3 Tbl fresh minced parsely
1 grated carrot

Directions:
1.   Combine broth, onion, garlic, ginger, mushrooms and simmer 15-20 minutes.
2.  Remove from heat. Add lemon juice, carrot and parsley. Cover and steam for 5 minutes.
3.  Eat and enjoy frequently!

Immune Modulating Bone Broth
This recipe, an amalgam I put together from various recommendations, really gets into the details of creating a delectable broth.  It is important not to skip the vinegar as it pulls minerals from the bones into the soup. Here is a version from a smart doc who was my secondary clinician when were were students!

Ingredients:
10 medium Shitaaki mushrooms, dried or frozen
Astragalus, 7 flat slices of root
2 pounds of beef marrow, knuckle bones, bits of leftover beef
1 pound meaty rib or neck bones
2-3 Tablespoons organic apple cider vinegar
2 quarts of water
Optional: Sea vegetables (eg Dulse), Miso paste

Directions:
Bring mushrooms, astragalus, beef bones, vinegar, and seaweed, if desired, and water to a boil. Then simmer on stove or in a crock pot for 6-24 hrs (up to 48 hrs.)  At the end of the cooking time, add vegetables such as carrots, potatoes (with skins), celery, spinach, green beans and simmer until just fork-tender.   Add ginger and garlic as desired.

If adding miso, add 1/2-1 Tablespoon to each bowl and dissolve into broth.  Avoid boiling miso, because this will destroy its probiotic activity.

Drink 2 c. or more daily.

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