Flu Season

Hubs came home last night feeling crummy. Achy, sore throat, head ache. Fabulous. He had called earlier so I changed the menu from a hearty chicken chili to a basic chicken soup loaded with veggies, ginger & garlic.

We can't purchase any kind of safe over the counter treatments or vitamins so standard procedure here is different than loading up on Vitamin C and store bought chicken soup. When allergies are at hand nipping these things in the bud is the best you can do. Lots of sleep, lots of water, lots of veggies and citrus fruits (for vitamins & minerals).

Quick chicken soup
Chicken, boneless skinless breasts or thighs work best
Veggies (I ran to the market and purchased a fresh zucchini & onions. I already had fresh carrots, celery, spinach, canned green beans, & frozen peas)
Broth (I used 32oz box)
Garlic (I used a few cloves of fresh & some powdered as well)
Onion (fresh & a little powdered)
Ginger (powdered - hate grating my own)
Salt & Pepper
small amount of butter/olive oil

Melt the butter or warm the oil in a large pot. Throw in the fresh onions & garlic until they start to become translucent. Chop chicken into bite sized pieces. Brown in the pot with onions. Season well with salt, pepper, onion & garlic powder as well as ginger. Once the chicken is browned pretty well, dump in the rest of the fresh ingredients - minus the spinach and simmer. Carrots & celery take a little while but after a few minutes drop in frozen ingredients. The spinach can be put in the bottom of a bowl or added right before serving into the pot. It really needs only a moment. I always taste the broth. If it's not flavorful enough I add more of the powdered seasoning because it disperses more quickly than fresh garlic or onion.

This soup works well for any occasion but I made a large pot last night and we ate it for dinner last night, lunch this morning and dinner this evening. It's not too filling but it's loaded with nutrients and easy to digest.

Stock up on:
Safe chicken stock
- home made keeps in the freezer for up to a year but takes time to thaw out and requires a little time
- Kitchen Basic Original Chicken Stock in a box is wonderful - you can purchase it in boxes of all sizes and I always keep it in the pantry, it specifically states "corn free" and we have never had a problem with it
Eggs
- Scrambled eggs are very easy to digest and quick to make
Veggies
- Fresh, seasonal is best but they have to be used quickly so they don't spoil
- Canned veggies are good and we typically keep green beans (Central Market Organics)
- Frozen, I always have peas in the freezer & if my organic veggies aren't being eaten fast enough I will freeze just about anything. Currently I have bell peppers & spinach that I was afraid we wouldn't eat before it spoiled (HATE, hate, hate throwing away food!).
Spices & Herbs
- Garlic
- Ginger
Honey - we purchase raw local wild flower honey
Orange Juice - Central Market Organics is pure 100% squeezed oranges, nothing added and is less expensive than purchasing oranges and juicing them myself
Epsom Salts - just the salt don't purchase the scented ones they might have corn
Pure essential oils - we add to baths, and "humidifiers"
Since I don't have a diffuser or anything for my essential oil so I boiled water on the stove and placed about 4 quarts of very hot water in a pan with a few drops of eucalyptus oil on a table beside the bed. It acted as a humidifier of sorts.


I'm happy to report that David is nearly as good as new despite being so sick last night.



Helpful links:
http://www.organicnutrition.co.uk/articles/colds.htm
http://www.remedies-for-natural-health.com/natural-flu-remedies.html