Immune-Boosting Pho Recipe

Whether you tend to approach cold and flu season by crossing your fingers and hoping for the best, or by stocking your cupboards with an arsenal of natural immunity-boosters, I’ve got a recipe for you that I think could revolutionize your approach to staying healthy this winter. It’s a delicious version of pho, the traditional Vietnamese soup that’s chock full of health-promoting aromatic spices.

As an enthusiastic vegan cook and an herbalist, I just had to play with the classic recipe a little bit to see if I could make an animal-friendly version that's even more effective and delicious than the original. I’ve added burdock root (Arctium lappa) to support liver function and to increase the mineral content. The astragalus in the recipe is prized as an immunomodulator. It will help to make your immune response more effective without causing your immune system to become overactive. Finally, eleuthero (Eleutherococcus senticosus) is an adaptogenic herb, meaning that it helps your body to respond more healthfully to physical and mental stress.

In many traditions, tonic herbs like these are considered to be most effective when cooked into food, but it's the taste of this soup that will keep you coming back for more. I can’t think of anything more comforting than cozying up with a bowl of this healing pho on a wintry day. Enjoy it as a meal or make a big batch of the broth and drink a bit each day as a delicious tonic for your immune system this winter.

Ingredients:

**Tip: you may be able to purchase the medicinal herbs for this recipe in the bulk section of your natural food store. If you can't find them there, you can order bulk herbs online.

For the broth:

• 2 unpeeled organic onions, cut into quarters
• 8-12 garlic cloves, smashed
• a 2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, cut into thick slices
• 2 cinnamon sticks (about 3 inches long)
• 2 star anise pods
• 4 cloves
• 1 cup dried burdock (Arctium lappa) root
• 1 Tbsp. dried (Astragalus membranaceus) root
• 1 Tbsp. dried Eleuthero (Eleutherococcus senticosus) root
• 3 Tbsp. tamari, or Coconut Aminos

To make it a meal:

• 1 pound rice noodles
• 8 ounces fried or baked tofu (or seitan), sliced
• 6 scallions, sliced thinly
• 1 cup mung bean sprouts
• Handful of fresh basil or cilantro leaves
• 1 lime
• Optional sauces for serving: hoisin or sriracha

To make the broth:

Start by dry-roasting the broth ingredients to bring out their flavor. Heat a very large soup pot over medium-high heat. Do not add any oil or water to the pot. When the pot is heated, add the quartered onion, garlic, ginger, cinnamon sticks, star anist, and cloves. Stir occasionally, allowing the veggies to char slightly and the spices to start to give off their aromas. This should take about 5-10 minutes.

Next, add 4-6 quarts of filtered water until your pot is a little bit more than ¾ of the way full. Add the medicinal roots (burdock, astragalus, and eleuthero) and give the pot a good stir. Bring the broth up to the boil, uncovered. Then, turn the heat down to low, partially cover the pot, and allow to simmer for 30-45 minutes. Add more water as needed to keep the pot about ¾ of the way full. If you have more time, let the broth simmer longer.

Once you’re finished simmering the broth, allow it to cool enough to handle. Strain the veggies, spices, and herbs from the broth using a strainer lined with cheesecloth and make sure to wring out your herbs and veggies by wrapping the cheesecloth around them and squeezing it with your hands. This helps to make sure you get to enjoy every last drop of the broth. (You can snack on the cooked onions, garlic, and ginger for an extra immune-boost.) Finish the broth by adding 3 Tbsp. of tamari or coconut aminos.

You can enjoy a cup of the broth each day as an immune tonic. It will keep in the fridge for about a week, or you can freeze it in small batches to use throughout the winter. Or, if you’d like to enjoy the Pho as a meal, cook your rice noodles according to package directions and place them in serving bowls with your tofu/seitan and mung bean sprouts. Cover each portion of noodles with a generous serving of broth and garnish with hand-torn basil leaves. Bring a small bowl of lime wedges to the table along with hot sauce and/or hoisin sauce so that everyone can serve themselves

[via Mind Body Green]

Safe Natural Alternatives to the Flu Shot

Pharmacies have already begun promoting walk-in flu shots for the "flu season". The late and early months of each year seem to be when more of us catch colds and come down with the flu. So what measures can you take to ensure you are not sidelined with nagging colds or a debilitating flu episode?

This article will give you nine easy tips, with probably the most important last. There you'll also be able to access a Health Ranger video with Mike Adams, which convincingly debunks the concept of "flu season".

Your Immune System

Boosting your immunity is important for coping with the cold and flu season. Of course, getting a flu shot with dubious efficacy is not one of them. All vaccines depress the immune system and can cause lifelong neurological damage and autoimmune diseases.

• Elderberry for Cures: Elderberry (pictured) extracts or syrups have been clinically proven to
  
  help get over colds and flu. It's not a drug. So it's cheaper and without the side effects that have been reported for Tamiflu. If you hurry, you can make your own tincture and save money. (source)
   
• Protective Supplements: Elderberry is curative. Echinacea herbs are protective. They're usually sold in tinctures or extracts. Vitamin C is protective and, in large quantities, curative. Zinc is a helpful mineral for protecting against colds. Increase them with the right foods or supplements.
   
• Minimize Sugar: Ease up on sodas, pastries and such. You've probably had enough ice cream during the summer. A few grams of sugar can destroy your white blood cells' ability to resist infections for several hours.
   
• Eat for the season: Root vegetables, soups and slow-cooked stews and casseroles are all favorites for the winter, as are beans and lentils. Don’t worry about calories (although avoid using too much fat and sugar in your cooking). Focus instead on the nutritional content. It’s normal to gain up to 4kg in the winter. This makes up part of your yin for the yang months.
   
• Eat more Garlic and Onion: Besides being rich in antioxidants and selenium, garlic is antibacterial and antiviral. Both garlic and onions are part of the Allium family, which is rich in sulfur-containing compounds responsible for many of their health-promoting effects.
   
• Exercise: Moderate exercise, even walking a mile or two at least three times a week, helps your lymph system cleanse impurities to boost your immune system. Avoid long grueling workouts. A brisk walk every day is all you need in the winter. Mindful practices such as winter chi ball, qi gong, tai chi, yoga, Pilates and Feldenkrais are also excellent for building and balancing yin and yang.
   
• Stress Less: This should be an all year practice. Many consider stress or anxiety as the leading cause for decreased immunity. Lighten up. Try meditation or yoga. Laugh more. Be less critical. Worry less.
   
• Sleep: Not necessarily more, but better. Make sure where you sleep is totally dark so your melatonin production will be sufficient. There are melatonin supplements if you feel the need. The different phases of sleep contain two cycles that are deep enough to refurbish your immune system. You need to sleep through them. (source)

• Probiotics: Your body contains ten times more bacteria than cells. Most of them have to be friendly. Friendly bacteria not only attack pathogenic bacteria and fungi, but also they trigger appropriate white cell reactions to invaders and they influence your mental/emotional state. It's estimated that eighty percent of your 100 trillion bacteria are located in the gut (source). Friendly bacteria are usually depleted, especially by GMOs. We all need probiotic foods and supplements. Commercial yogurt is insufficient. Raw milk and raw cheese, fermented foods, and water kefir or milk kefir should be staples (source). There are probiotic supplements as well. If you're forced into taking antibiotics, double up with probiotic supplements.

• Vitamin D3: If you live in a year round warm sunny area, you'll need to make sure you get plenty of sun to skin exposure. If your regional climate restricts sun exposure, take your Vitamin D3 supplements. You can check your Vitamin D3 blood levels, but many experts recommend five to ten thousand units daily.

Mike Adams debunks the mainstream flu "season" concept in this video.

[via Natural News]