snack therapy
anti-stress veggie soup?
ZOË KOGAN L.Ac
Before we discuss a magic veggie that lowers stress, on a personal note, I’ve been lucky enough to connect with extended family in Ukraine. I’ve been able to chat with my second cousin in the Ukrainian military, his face lit by the glow of the screen in a bunker. He smiles while we talk, temporarily transported to my world of safety and bad jokes about our family.
Connecting with my resilient cousin has brought me back to my roots including the vegetables that continue to be food staples. And one of these root vegetables helps keep us calm so we can carry on. Have you already guessed it?
Hot soup that cools blood.
Back in the days of landlines, Tab soda and tanning oil, my family lived in my grandparent’s house in Flatbush. My great-grandparents lived upstairs and there were frequent visits from aunts and cousins. The family elders chatted in Russian, Ukrainian and English while filling my infant mouth with dollops of farmer cheese.
My Great Grandfather, Moise grew up in Ukraine and worked as a butcher in the US. He married our Grammy, a powerful woman half his size. Grammy was the talker of the two and Moise spent years hiding from her in plain sight, sometimes behind a door with a finger to his lips.
Soup was on heavy rotation at my grandparent’s. There’s no better way to feed a table with varying tastes and big appetites. Healthy, economical and plentiful, borscht was a crowd pleaser. Add sour cream, lemon, pepper or butter, crackers, bread or fresh dill. But what was the magical ingredient in this soup that helped many if the elders live well into their 90’s?
The modest, purple beet!
Clinical studies have shown that beets may help lower high blood pressure (though there’s no risk of beets lowering normal blood pressure) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6316347/. These veggies may help the body self-regulate.
Chinese medicine describes high blood pressure as frenetic heat in the blood causing yang to rise. Because borscht is packed with root vegetables pulled from the dirt, beets, potatoes, carrots and onion are all energetically yin vegetables that help to cool blood heat. Root yin vegetables cooked in warm broth are a great way to tonify yin, balance yang and strengthen qi for all of us even if your blood pressure is already perfect.
BORSCHT
3 Beets– vitamin C, iron and folate and may help lower blood pressure
½ Head of Cabbage- vitamin C, K, potassium and folate
3 Potatoes- vitamin C, B1, B3 and B6 vitamins
2 Carrots - vitamin A
Meat bones- (optional) calcium, iron, potassium
1 Onion- Vitamin C, B6, potassium
10 Cups of Water- fill to cover ingredients
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Lemon- will stop your scurvy
Fresh dill (optional) dried dill works too.
Saute some onion in any type of oil then add the rest of the ingredients. Cover with water and simmer covered until soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.
My family’s borscht was lightly seasoned without bouillon, you really tasted every ingredient. The secret to borscht is working with what you’ve got. The word borscht is derived from the word for cow parsnip also known as hogweed or heracleum sphondylium, a flowering plant in the fennel family also called can be roughly translated as sour soup.
Sour soup? Such a broad translation opens up a huge range of possibilities in my book. Make your borscht to suit your tastes and use whatever’s in the fridge. Sweet potatoes? Why not? Peppers, mushrooms, leafy greens? Do what feels right and tastes delish! Just add beets.
We love you, Ukraine! This borscht’s for you!
I know many of your generous hearts have already contributed to help support Ukraine. And if you haven’t because you’re uncertain which organization provides direct aid, I highly recommend contributing to Unicef whose primary goal is to help children in countries at war.
My huge hearted friend, Emma Kostura works for Unicef and thoughtfully explained their work on the ground in Ukraine. Here's a quick note from Emma Kostura at Unicef about their direct aid.
The situation in Ukraine is increasingly dire for children who are caught in this terrible war. Nearly two thirds of Ukraine's 7.5 million children have been displaced, and over 4 million people, mostly children and women, have crossed into neighboring countries. Unicef's humanitarian work in Ukraine focuses on meeting the most urgent needs for safety, health care, safe water, nutrition and protection while also safeguarding children's rights and long term well-being. All contributions to Unicef using this link will go directly to help children and families in need of support in Ukraine.
Thank you!
Zoë