By: Cat Ebeling, RN, MSN-PHN, co-author of the best-sellers:  The Fat Burning Kitchen, The Top 101 Foods that Fight Aging & The Diabetes Fix

Nothing soothes and warms like a homemade chicken soup. This soup is especially warm, delicious and comforting, especially on a chilly day. You don’t have to be sick to appreciate its healing qualities, but it certainly will warm your soul and your body if you are.

Avgolemono–it’s a mouthful! (avgo means ‘egg’; lemono means ‘lemon’) soup is a dish that Greek mothers make to keep their families healthy. And this soup is full of antioxidants and other powerful nutrition to fend off colds and flu.

Why is chicken soup so soothing and healing? Scientists have actually studied it to find out! A Dr. Stephen Rennard, who is an MD from the University of Nebraska Medical Center, tested chicken soup to see if it helps the immune system.

It was found that the chicken soup had strong anti-inflammatory powers, which is why it helps with stuffy noses, sore throats and coughs. The soup actually helps to break up congestion and eases the flow of nasal secretions. And chicken soup is also loaded with valuable nutrients that strengthen the immune system too.

Chicken also contains an amino acid called cysteine that is released when you make the soup. This amino acid is similar to the drug acetylcysteine, which is prescribed by doctors to patients with bronchitis. It thins the mucus in the lungs, making it easier to cough out.

Carrots, a regular ingredient found in chicken soup, is a great source of beta-carotene. The body uses beta-carotene to converts to vitamin A. Vitamin A helps prevent and fight off infections by enhancing the actions of white blood cells that destroy harmful bacteria and viruses.

Beyond the soup’s soothing qualities and easy to digest protein, this soup contains mint and oregano, which both contain rosmarinic acid, which helps to open up the bronchial tubes and lungs, and ease respiratory problems. The lemon juice provides vitamin C, and the leeks, garlic and onion deliver antioxidants that are potent cold and flu fighting immune benefits.

And—if you use chicken bone broth it has its own set of benefits as well. Bone broth also strengthens the immune system, soothes the digestive system, fights inflammation, helps with weight loss, adds electrolytes, is good for your hair and nails, is anti-aging and great for your joints.

This soup tastes every bit as good the next day, but if reheating, be sure to heat over low heat to prevent the eggs from curdling.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 cup cooked, shredded chicken
2 medium leeks, white parts only, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and diced
5-6 cups organic free-range chicken bone broth
½ cup quinoa or brown rice (in stead of the traditional orzo pasta)
2 large organic, free range eggs
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano

Directions

In a saucepan, add leeks, onion and carrots along with a pinch of sea salt to olive oil. Cook, over medium heat, stirring gently for about 6-7 minutes.

Stir in chicken and broth, add enough salt and pepper to taste. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add rice and cook until tender. Remove from heat.

In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs and lemon juice. Add 3 ladles of soup broth to the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Mix egg mixture back into soup and cook over low heat for another 2-3 minutes. Do not allow it to boil. Garnish with parsley, mint and fresh oregano and lemon wedges. Serves 4-6.

Get your FREE copy of the Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook.

Looking for easy, tasty recipes that help you burn fat, then look no further…

This free recipe book is packed with over 80 fat-burning Keto recipes, such has mouth-watering chicken, beef, pork meals and more…

Best yet, every single recipe uses a slow cooker. Spend less than 20 minutes in your kitchen whipping up these delicious meals.

The post Homemade Greek Avgolemono Soup appeared first on thenutritionwatchdog.com.

Have you ever tried prosciutto? This is the Italian version of ham, but it is not sweet and it doesn’t have that maple-y flavor of ham. Prosciutto is actually an Italian dry-cured type of ham that has a better reputation than our U.S. versions of ham and bacon.

Prosciutto is part of the European “Protected Designation of Origin” which means that for it to be true prosciutto, it must come from a particular region in Italy—similar to how wine is produced in France.

Prosciutto is just quality raw ham, sea salt, air and about of year of curing. That is all. No sugars, no nitrates or nitrites, and no other chemicals to preserve it. No artificial anything. This means prosciutto is actually not consider a ‘processed meat’, but merely a dried meat.

If you are following a keto or Paleo diet, prosciutto is the better choice, since it never has added sugar, nor does it contain any carbohydrates.

Prosciutto is sliced super thin and is full of flavor. You certainly do not need to eat a lot of it to taste its presence or to feel satisfied. That is why the prosciutto in this recipe makes it so delicious—and different from your standard eggs and bacon or eggs and ham.

When you compare prosciutto with bacon, prosciutto wins hands down. It is lower in calories, lower in fat, lower in sugar and lower in salt—and it is never made with nitrates or any other chemicals, and it has a BIG taste!

Now, let’s talk about eggs. If you have noticed lately, shopping for eggs has become more confusing—there’s regular conventional factory farm eggs which means the poor chickens are packed into a warehouse under artificial light, given antibiotics and hormones and pesticide laden grain for feed. Their beaks are often cut off so they don’t peck at each other and they are often sickly.

Then there’s ‘free range’ eggs which means the chickens are basically all stuffed in a factory farm like setting and there may be a door open in the big facility where they are raised. They don’t necessarily get to go outside, they are just not kept in cages all the time. Not a lot healthier. They are routinely given antibiotics and hormones and kept under artificial light as well. They are fed grain, often sprayed with Monsanto glyphosate.

Moving up the ladder we get to ‘organic eggs’. These chickens are fed only organic feed, but keep in mind, it’s ‘feed’, not their natural diet. Organic eggs must come from chickens that are only given antibiotics in the event of an infection. No hormones or added drugs are used in organic egg production. Chickens producing organic eggs live in a cage-free environment and must have access to the outside, even if that is just a small pen or enclosed yard.

There are now ‘pastured eggs’, not to be confused with ‘free-range’ eggs—a totally different way of raising chickens and you will notice the eggs look totally different too! Pastured eggs are about as good as you can get, unless you are raising your own chickens! Chickens are omnivores and like to hunt and peck for grubs, worms, and bugs. Pastured raised chickens get to roam around a rich field and are allowed to eat their natural diets—although they may get some organic grain to supplement their diets.

Often pastured chickens are kept in a move-able pasture, with plenty of room to roam, so they get to move to fresh fields on a regular basis. Pastured eggs are full of omega 3 fats and have rich egg yolks full of nutrients. Pastured eggs have twice as much vitamin E, almost 40% more vitamin A, two and a half times as much omega 3 fats and less omega 6 fats, compared to caged eggs.

You will notice the rich yellow-orange color of the yolks and the superior taste when you eat pastured eggs. Bon Appetite!

Prosciutto Spinach Cup Eggs

Easy to make and easy to clean up. Hold off adding salt until you’ve had a taste. Prosciutto is pretty salty, so your eggs may have all the salt they need. Serves 3-6 depending on hunger.

Ingredients

• Butter for greasing the pan
• 6-8 thin slices prosciutto
• 1 cup baby spinach or baby kale
• 6 pastured eggs
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon chopped chives or chopped green onions

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 6-cup muffin tin with butter.
• Line each muffin cup with a slice of prosciutto, doing your best to cover the surface of the cup with the prosciutto so that it forms a bowl to crack the egg into. Lay a few of the spinach or kale leaves over the prosciutto.
• Crack an egg into each muffin cup and sprinkle the top with a crack of black pepper.
• Bake until the white is set but the yolk still runny, about 18-20 minutes, keeping in mind it will continue to cook a bit after it’s out of the oven.
• Remove from oven and top each egg with a pinch of green onion or chives. Let cool for 1 minute so the egg sets up enough to remove.
• Use a narrow spatula or butter knife to carefully wedge each egg out of its muffin cup. Set on a plate and serve immediately. Taste and add salt if needed.

Get your FREE copy of the Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook.

Looking for easy, tasty recipes that help you burn fat, then look no further…

This free recipe book is packed with over 80 fat-burning Keto recipes, such has mouth-watering chicken, beef, pork meals and more…

Best yet, every single recipe uses a slow cooker. Spend less than 20 minutes in your kitchen whipping up these delicious meals.

References
http://www.brightonyourhealth.com/salt-and-time-why-prosciutto-isnt-really-a-processed-meat/
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/pastured-vs-omega-3-vs-conventional-eggs

The post Prosciutto Egg Cups appeared first on thenutritionwatchdog.com.