Warm Up Your Immune System With Fall’s Aromatic Spices
Fall tends to be a favourite season with most, and besides the festivities of the harvest and Hallowe’en, it has something to do with the spices! The best are listed below and I go a step further to give you a great little lesson on why these are so powerful for your immune system – just in time for when the cold weather hits!
Cinnamon just feels good all over. It smells nice, and it goes well with everything. It compliments apples and dances well with the flavors of pumpkin and squashes. It boasts antimicrobial benefits and is excellent at helping reduce inflammation. It curbs the effects of insulin to help prevent spikes in blood sugar and is excellent for improving attention. It’s great to help fight off bacterial infections which makes it perfect to add to foods for Autumn’s entry of cold and flu season.
Nutmeg is a warming spice that goes well in similar foods as cinnamon. It’s a little stronger than cinnamon and has a couple more ways to incorporate it into a healthy lifestyle. Put a sprinkle into your toothpaste if you have a toothache or add a sprinkle to your facial cream. Consider mixing a little into a homemade facial made of coconut oil, or even plain yogurt and watch your skin glow. It’s a great way to amp up your protection of your brain as it contains ingredients that are terrific for preventing degenerative diseases. It’s warming properties help quell inflammation and increase circulation. Basically, nutmeg keeps you warm…
Cloves get even a little warmer than nutmeg and boast anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant values. It’s pretty much “anti” illness. Traditional uses include using the essential oil for toothaches as it works as a wonderful antiseptic. Whole cloves are pretty and can be used as additions to seasonal decor to add aroma and colour.
Ginger is famous as a powerful digestive aid. It blends well with a variety of foods and is fabulous in main dishes and desserts. Ginger’s gnarly root looks somewhat like the limbs of the body and specifically it helps to relieve the inflammation and pain of conditions such as arthritis.
Mix ’em up! The wonderful thing about these spices is that they all work together in foods. Blending them into soups, casseroles, baking and smoothies revs up your metabolism, aids in digestion and quells inflammation. This is perfect for Fall as temperatures drop and seasonal germs start to creep out. Boost your immunity and stay warm this fall with the spices of life!
Enjoy some of all of these spices in my recipe below. I call it “Orange Soup” – serve it up in a little hollowed out pumpkin just so it’s deliciously cute!
ORANGE SOUP
This is yummy – adjust ingredients to suit your taste
6 cups organic chicken broth or vegetable broth
2 cups diced butternut squash
3 carrots, chopped
1 large sweet potato – diced
1 can of pure pumpkin, or mashed flesh of a roasted pie pumpkin (save the seeds to roast)
2 cored apples, peeled or pure unsweetened applesauce
Sea salt and pepper to taste
Cinnamon to taste
Nutmeg to taste
Ginger to taste
1 dash pure vanilla extract (not the fake stuff)
1 cup coconut milk (optional to make it creamier)
Maple syrup – add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup
COOK and blend in blender or with hand-blender until creamy smooth. Enjoy!
