Wholesome Threesome Protein Soup

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This soup has two protein– and fiber-rich pseudo-grains, one real wholegrain, and nutrient-dense cashews for yet even more protein, and all of the above are full of many great vitamins and minerals. All in all, a well-balanced and highly-nutritious light meal!

You will need

  • ⅓ cup quinoa
  • ⅓ cup green lentils
  • ⅓ cup wholegrain rice
  • 5 cups low-sodium vegetable stock (ideally you made this yourself from offcuts of vegetables, but failing that, low-sodium stock cubes can be bought in most large supermarkets)
  • ¼ cup cashews
  • 1 tbsp dried thyme
  • 1 tbsp black pepper, coarse ground
  • ½ tsp MSG or 1 tsp low-sodium salt

Optional topping:

  • ⅓ cup pine nuts
  • ⅓ cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Rinse the quinoa, lentils, and rice.

2) Boil 4 cups of the stock and add the grains and seasonings (MSG/salt, pepper, thyme); simmer for about 25 minutes.

3) Blend the cashews with the other cup of vegetable stock, until smooth. Add the cashew mixture to the soup, stirring it in, and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes.

4) Heat the coconut oil in a skillet and add the pine nuts, stirring until they are golden brown.

5) Serve the soup into bowls, adding the mint and pine nuts to each.

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

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  • Foods For Managing Hypothyroidism (incl. Hashimoto’s)

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    Foods for Managing Hypothyroidism

    For any unfamiliar, hypothyroidism is the condition of having an underactive thyroid gland. The thyroid gland lives at the base of the front of your neck, and, as the name suggests, it makes and stores thyroid hormones. Those are important for many systems in the body, and a shortage typically causes fatigue, weight gain, and other symptoms.

    What causes it?

    This makes a difference in some cases to how it can be treated/managed. Causes include:

    • Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune condition
    • Severe inflammation (end result is similar to the above, but more treatable)
    • Dietary deficiencies, especially iodine deficiency
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    We can’t do a lot about those last two by leveraging diet alone, but we can make a big difference to the others.

    What to eat (and what to avoid)

    There is nuance here, which we’ll go into a bit, but let’s start by giving the one-line two-line summary that tends to be the dietary advice for most things:

    • Eat a nutrient-dense whole-foods diet (shocking, we know)
    • Avoid sugar, alcohol, flour, processed foods (ditto)

    What’s the deal with meat and dairy?

    • Meat: avoid red and processed meats; poultry and fish are fine or even good (unless fried; don’t do that)
    • Dairy: limit/avoid milk; but unsweetened yogurt and cheese are fine or even good

    What’s the deal with plants?

    First, get plenty of fiber, because that’s important to ease almost any inflammation-related condition, and for general good health for most people (an exception is if you have Crohn’s Disease, for example).

    If you have Hashimoto’s, then gluten (as found in wheat, barley, and rye) may be an issue, but the jury is still out, science-wise. Here’s an example study for “avoid gluten” and “don’t worry about gluten”, respectively:

    So, you might want to skip it, to be on the safe side, but that’s up to you (and the advice of your nutritionist/doctor, as applicable).

    A word on goitrogens…

    Goitrogens are found in cruciferous vegetables and soy, both of which are very healthy foods for most people, but need some extra awareness in the case of hypothyroidism. This means there’s no need to abstain completely, but:

    • Keep serving sizes small, for example a 100g serving only
    • Cook goitrogenic foods before eating them, to greatly reduce goitrogenic activity

    For more details, reading even just the abstract (intro summary) of this paper will help you get healthy cruciferous veg content without having a goitrogenic effect.

    (as for soy, consider just skipping that if you suffer from hypothyroidism)

    What nutrients to focus on getting?

    • Top tier nutrients: iodine, selenium, zinc
    • Also important: vitamin B12, vitamin D, magnesium, iron

    Enjoy!

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  • What to Eat When – by Drs. Michael Roizen and Michael Crupain

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    Here at 10almonds, we cover a lot of the “what to eat”, but tend to only sometimes touch on the “when”—and indeed, this is a reflection of a popular focus. But what if we were to pay a little more attention to that “when”; what would it get us?

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    The style throughout is very focused on practical actionable advice. For example, amongst other lifestyle-adjustment suggestions, the authors make the case for front-loading various kinds of food earlier in the day, and eating more attentively and mindfully when we do eat.

    They also offer a lot of “quick tips” of the kind we love here at 10almonds! Ranging from “how about this breakfast idea” to “roasting chickpeas like this makes a great snack” to “this dessert is three healthy foods disguised as a sundae”

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    Click here to get “What To Eat When” from Amazon today!

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    It’s Q&A Day at 10almonds!

    Have a question or a request? You can always hit “reply” to any of our emails, or use the feedback widget at the bottom!

    In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

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    ❝What is Mediterranean diet which book to read?❞

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    As to books, there are so many, and we review books about it from time to time, so keep an eye out for our daily “One-Minute Book Review” section. We do highly recommend “How Not To Die”, which is a science-heavy approach to diet-based longevity, and essentially describes the Mediterranean Diet, with some tweaks.

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    Yes, yes it is. However, most people misunderstand the nature of its badness, which is what causes problems. The biggest problem is not the acute effects of one afternoon’s burger and fries; the biggest problem is the gradual slide into regularly eating junk food, and the long-term effects of that habit as our body changes to accommodate it (of which, people tend to focus on subcutaneous fat gain as it’s usually the most visible, but that’s really the least of our problems).

    Cumulative effects

    There are, of course, immediate negative effects too, and they’re not without cause for concern. Because of the composition of most junk food, it will almost by definition result in immediate blood sugar spikes, rising insulin levels, and a feeling of fatigue not long afterwards.

    • Within a week of regularly consuming junk food, gut bacteria will change, resulting in moderate cravings, as well as a tendency towards depression and anxiety. Mood swings are likely, as are the gastrointestinal woes associated with any gut microbiota change.
    • Within two weeks, those effects will be greater, the cravings will increase, energy levels will plummet, and likely skin issues may start to show up (our skin mostly works on a 3-week replacement cycle; some things can show up in the skin more quickly or slowly than that, though).
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    If that seems drastic, along the lines of “eat junk food for a month and get cancer”, well, it’s an elevated risk, not a scheduled diagnosis, but the body is constantly rebuilding itself, for better or for worse, and if we sabotage its efforts by consuming a poor diet, then it will be for worse.

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  • Black Bean & Butternut Balti

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Protein, fiber, and pungent polyphenols abound in this tasty dish that’s good for your gut, heart, brain, and more:

    You will need

    • 2 cans (each 14 oz or thereabouts) black beans, drained and rinsed (or: 2 cups black beans, cooked, drained, and rinsed)
    • 1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into ½” cubes
    • 1 cauliflower, cut into florets
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    • 1 can (14 oz or thereabouts) chopped tomatoes
    • 1 cup coconut milk
    • ½ bulb garlic, crushed
    • 1″ piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
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    • 2 tsp ground coriander
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    • 1 tsp ground paprika
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    (we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

    1) Preheat the oven to 400℉ / 200℃.

    2) Toss the squash and cauliflower in a little olive oil, to coat evenly. No need to worry about seasoning, because these are going into the curry later and will get plenty there.

    3) Roast them on a baking tray lined with baking paper for about 25 minutes.

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    5) Add the spices/seasonings, including the garlic, ginger, and chili, and stir well to combine.

    6) Add the tomatoes, beans, and coconut milk, and simmer for 10 minutes. You can add a little water at any time if it seems to need it.

    7) Stir in the roasted vegetables (they should be finished now), and heat through. Add the lemon juice and stir.

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    Enjoy!

    Want to learn more?

    For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

    Take care!

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails: