Bring-Me-Back-to-Life Soup (Original Recipe & Photos)

Be warned, this is more of a tasty exorcism than a soup! Sometimes in this life, we get sick and whatnot, our immunity falls down in the shambles or a nasty cold overtakes us. During the last few days I've had really low energy and general feeling of pessimism, and was wondering what could have brought this on.. Then I realized - I've been eating nothing but cakes and champagne for days! Granted, that doesn't sound bad, but my body is such that it can take only so much of the good (bad) things before it decides to throw a tantrum. In such cases, I employ my secret weapon - high power medicine in the form of a soup!

What we need:

Onions, of course, as they are single most healthy thing in the world, and have great anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory abilities. Here I used garlic, onion and leaks, as well as some ginger, paprika and cabbage. Cabbage is also one of the healthiest things, detox master. In the winter when I make this soup, I use sauerkraut, but summer calls for a bit fresher vibe.

We are gonna use another super-food as a base - coconut oil. Heat it up.

Clean and chop those onions (and paprika).

Garlic makes your fingers smell, so it's a good idea to cut ginger after, as it will take the smell out. I used this special tool to cut ginger in thin slices, to mix it up, sort of.

Next up, get them all in a pot with coconut oil and fry a bit, with a generous spoonful of chili flakes.

Add some soy sauce, stir it up, and add a glass of water. Let simmer while you cut cabbage.

I recommend cutting cabbage in smaller pieces, one-bite friendly.

Let simmer a while, until it starts slightly boiling.

Now, for the magical mix of spices! One whole spoon of wild oregano, two teaspoons of turmeric, one teaspoon of chili flakes, one teaspoon of cumin and two of coriander - along with a pretty bay leaf.

Let it simmer for a while, adding some water if necessary. Feel free to add in whatever you want now - rice, lentils, seeds.

Aaaand - here it is! The strongest pill in form of a food. Be warned that this is very, very spicy, strong and a bit bitter in taste. It's a kind of thing your mother would force you to eat if you were sick, except you are your own mother now :)

I added a dollop of Greek yogurt, it helps chill things out a bit. Have a napkin near you - and be prepared to sweat, burp, blow your nose and maybe even cry while you eat this! But don't worry - that's the point. This mean little soup will cure whatever ailment troubles your immunity, and depending on your case, you can eat it for a few days. Just reheat, adding a bit more of different vegetables and water, and it's good to last at least a week.

Enjoy!