Thankfulness and Mushroom Soup

I’ve recently been gifted some grocery money, which I always put to good use, with me being on the special nutrition protocol and everything. Today, though, I did a nice online shop (I have to have my groceries delivered, as I am housebound) and got in a lot of fresh produce. As the weather is now turning off cooler here in the Tennessee Valley, I have jumped fully back into “Crockpot Season” here at Chez Jannipants.

Several weeks ago, I made a huge pot full of vegetable beef soup (chock full of super-greens and substituting white potatoes with sweet potatoes) and I was able to freeze quite a few portions! The nice thing about having healthy soup options available in the freezer, is that when I go into an autoimmune flare, I have some easy meals that just take a few minutes in the microwave to sort out. Ironically, though, shortly after making that nice supply of soups – I did, in fact, go into a flare. Simultaneously, I had a kidney infection. Needless to say, the soup was my saving grace! That is… on the days when I actually felt up to eating. There were quite a few that I just skipped it and drank a little bone broth. It happens.

Anyway, because I used up so much of my soup supply, I thought it would be a good idea to restock now that I seem to be coming out of the flare. I never know from one day to the next how I will feel, so I try to take advantage of the “better” days and get things done around the house (laundry all caught up, etc…) – or even prepare some food ahead of time – just in case I’m hit with a couple of weeks of downtime.

I decided that I would make a crock pot full of creamy mushroom soup today, and then tomorrow, I would make another pot of the vegetable beef like before. Right now, my house smells AMAZING! I’ve had the pot on for a couple of hours now. Several different kinds of mushrooms are in it – Shiitake, Oyster, Portabello, and White Button. There are other shrooms that I would have loved to use in it (Porcini, Maitake, Chanterelle, Hedgehog…) but I can’t seem to find them where I live. I guess we’re a bit limited in many food offerings here. I think it’s going to be very nice when it’s done. It should be ready right around dinnertime, which is nice. I’ll have a lovely bowl of it and then freeze the rest for later.

Tomorrow, I’ll do it all over again, but with the beef and the veg. I’m excited that Publix had bok choy on sale – that’ll be going in the soup, for sure! Along with some kale, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, celery, carrots, onions, a smidgen of garlic, and various and sundry herbs and spices. I was able to get a London Broil on sale, too. Those cook up very nicely in a slow-cooker and work so well in this concoction!

I think this weekend I may do another batch of fiskesuppe (Norwegian fish soup) as it is a huge fave of mine in the wintertime! I tend to really embrace my Scandi DNA this time of year. 😂 Fiskesuppe is AMAZING on a cold day, though. I have some cod in the freezer that would be perfect in it. 😋

I’m incredibly thankful for gifts of $ and/or Instacart Gift Cards. Generous gifts such as those have, quite literally, kept me alive this past year. Being able to stay true to this protocol has really helped me to be so much better, overall. Yes, I still have flares – there is no cure for autoimmune disease. I can, however, do everything in my power to keep inflammation levels down and to try and strengthen my mitochondria.

One day at a time. One meal at a time…