There’s something so warm and comforting about the taste of fall — warm soups, seasonal muffins, and decadently sweet drinks. While many food and beverage companies advertise their products as healthy snacks, most pre-packaged fast-food items are actually loaded with sugar and contain very little nutritional value. But with a couple of easy tricks, you can transform your kids’ diets and help them power through their busy days while boosting their mood and immune systems:
Re-think your family’s snacks. A smart snack is meant to be a mini meal: containing good quality protein, a brain-boosting fat, and a complex carbohydrate. Try a turkey roll up with avocado and cucumber, or an almond butter and banana sandwich on whole-grain toast, or a pumpkin yogurt smoothie.
Turn fresh-baked goods into nutritional power houses. With busy schedules, we’re often lured by convenience foods and fall prey to the the closest vending machine or fast-food establishment. But if we prepare homemade muffins, cookies, and brownies with superfoods like oats, chia seeds, and coconut oil, we satisfy our kids’ sweet cravings without compromising their health.
Fill your thermos together. If your children are involved in their snack preparation from start to finish, they will be more inclined to make healthy choices when they are not with you. Pick a day of the week to cook together. Most kids love the idea of a stone soup, throwing a variety of vegetables and herbs together to produce a hearty broth. I always include a thermos of soup in my daughter’s lunchbox for after-school. She says it fills her heart as well as her belly. Anything interactive with children makes it more delicious.
In the words of my maternal grandmother, Beauty, who taught me to cook at age 9, sending me a weekly recipe card and $20 bill: “Good food is not fast, fast food is not good, and if you know how to make a pot of soup, you can nourish yourself for life.”
Dawn Lerman — also known as “The Snacking Mama” — is a top Manhattan nutritionist and the author of the best-selling book, “My Fat Dad: A Memoir of Food, Love, and Family, With Recipes.” Follow her on Twitter@DawnLerman.
Vegan, protein-packed butternut squash soup
Yield 6-8 servings
INGREDIENTS:
3 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 cup (150 grams) raw cashews
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 large butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled and diced into 1/2-inch pieces
5 cups vegetable stock
2 tablespoons minced, fresh ginger
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup coconut milk, plus additional (optional)
1 sprig fresh rosemary
DIRECTIONS: In large stockpot or Dutch oven set over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil until shimmering. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the cashews and cook, stirring, until the onions are translucent and the cashews have slightly browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the squash, broth, ginger, cumin, coriander, curry powder, turmeric and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and bring the soup to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook the soup until the squash is easily pierced with a knife, 20 to 25 minutes. Uncover the soup and let it cool for 15 minutes.
Starting on slow speed and increasing to high, purée the soup in small batches in a blender until smooth. Place a towel over the top of the blender in case of any splatters. You can also use an immersion blender (let the soup remain in the pot), but it will take longer to purée until smooth.
If using a blender, return the soup to the pot, add the coconut milk and rosemary sprig, and cook over low heat, covered, until slightly thickened, for about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready. If serving the soup later, while reheating the soup, thin it out with more broth or coconut milk until the desired consistency.
