Easy Bean Soup!

Hey followers!! I hope the holiday season is finding everyone well. I've had a little too much on my plate (literally and figuratively) this past week and consequently have not been able to post! Here's a fun fact of the season: I heard somewhere that the average person gains 8 pounds during the holidays. I wonder if its true? I've certainly been riding the "excessive eating/drinking/snacking" train for a few days. Eating is a profoundly social urge, and so much time spent with family and loved ones calls for lots of cooking, sweets, and over-indulging. All-in-all, though, weight fluctuation is a natural thing. No one should be freaking out about adding holiday pounds, because unless you continue to shovel food into your mouth at the holiday pace, extra weight should come right off as you ease back into your normal lifestyle. Sorry I just got carried away with that.

ANYWAYS, I'd like to share a soup with you that I tried out this weekend. Its just about the easiest soup you could ask for, and it can be easily tailored to your liking, or based on what you have in the kitchen.

Easy Bean Soup

Combine 1 can of tomatoes (diced, or whole and then cut up with a knife, undrained), 1 can of corn (drained), 2-3 cups of cooked white beans (canned or dried), and 3 oz of diced ham (optional if you aren't a meat-eater) in a large saucepan. Cook until all ingredients are hot, and season with chili powder and cumin. You can add as much or as little as you want. This yields about 4 servings, but you can easily double the recipe and freeze for later.

I left out the ham, but had some extra potatoes and kale laying around, so I added those.

Some nutrition tidbits about this dish:
Dried beans are better than canned beans. While they provide the same protein, fiber, and iron, canned beans are often in a salt solution which can really crank up the sodium content of the meal. Dried beans do not contain any added salt, and are easily prepped. All you have to do is dump them in a pot with water and soak them for a day or so. If you're in a hurry, you can bring them to a boil and then simmer them for 3-4 hours.

Iron and vitamin C are partners in crime. Vitamin C helps iron to be absorbed into the blood stream. If  you take an iron supplement, for example, taking it with a glass of orange juice significantly improves the iron absorption in your body. There is a lot of iron in this soup from the beans (and the meat if you're adding any), so adding ingredients with vitamin C will also help you to get all that iron. Tomatoes are a great source of vitamin C, and so are green peppers, kale, spinach, and broccoli.

While I'm on an iron rant, I'd like to emphasize the importance of having adequate iron intake (especially in women!). Iron is responsible for cell growth and differentiation, regulation of immune activity, proper functioning of the liver, antioxidant activity, and it is perhaps most known for its function in the blood. Iron is essential for the formation of hemoglobin and transporting oxygen to all cells of the body. An iron deficiency can result in anemia which causes fatigue, breathlessness, decreased work and school performance, and headaches. Iron is better absorbed from sources of meat, so if you are a vegetarian it might be a good idea to consider an iron supplement. Women also lose a fair amount of blood each month and are more likely to have an iron deficiency if iron intake is not carefully monitored.

I am, generally speaking, not a supplement user, as I believe that vitamins and minerals can be easily consumed via real food, and if you're eating a balanced diet then you have no need for a supplemental pill or powder. However, I'm an advocate of the iron supplement. I am both a woman and a (mostly) vegetarian, and I don't drink a glass of orange juice with everything I eat. In the past I have had poor circulation and am often tired and cold (especially in the winter!), and have not been able to donate blood in the past because of my low iron count. Now I take a few iron pills per week and have experienced a huge difference in my quality of life. If you experience any of these symptoms, iron might solve your problems!

OK, I'm done ranting for today. More rants to come.......