After a Vacation, Reset Your Gut Microbiome with a Vegetable Bean Soup

When I come home after a vacation, I make a special effort to eat many DIFFERENT whole plant foods in order to help my gut microbiome recover from having eaten too few plants while I was away. Research has shown that if we eat 30 or more plants a week, we help to improve the diversity and health of our gut microbiome.

The gut microbiome is made up of trillions of different microbes which promote the health of your digestive, nervous, immune and endocrine systems. To help these microbes survive and thrive, you need to feed them the food they eat and that’s fiber and polyphenols, both of which are only found in plant foods.

There are thousands of different fibers and polyphenols and about 500 different species of gut microbes, each of which feeds on specific fibers or polyphenols. So the best way to feed ALL of your gut microbes is to eat a wide VARIETY of whole plant foods.

Enjoy this simple vegetable bean soup along with a few seeded crackers and give your gut microbes a feast of 26+ different plants!

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Vegetable Bean Soup with Seeded Crackers

• 1 jar Trader Joe’s Garden Vegetable Soup (contains 16 different plants)
• 1 jar or can of beans (contains one or more different beans)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Chopped fresh cilantro or parsley (optional)
• Squeeze of fresh lemon or lime juice (optional)

Directions: Mix the quantity of soup and beans you want in a serving bowl or in your own soup bowl. Heat in the microwave or on the stovetop. Garnish with olive oil and cilantro or parsley. Add a spritz of lemon or lime juice, if desired.
Serve with Trader Joe’s Seeds & Grains Crispbread.
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Trader Joe’s Garden Vegetable Soup
This Trader Joe’s soup contains real foods and no ultra processed ingredients, such as modified starch, a common ingredient in many soups, including organic soups. The sole purpose of these ultra processed ingredients is to make cheap food taste better and last longer. Unfortunately, we are only beginning to know what damage these ultra processed ingredients do to our bodies!

Note: I have not done an extensive search for vegetable soups that do not have ultra processed ingredients. If you know of any other soups that do not contain ultra processed ingredients, please leave a comment to let us all know. Thanks!

Jovial Beans
Jovial beans are high quality organic beans that have been pressure cooked in small batches and canned in glass jars. I like the just-right firmness of the beans and how clear and clean the bean liquid is. Jovial beans come from Italy and are available in most supermarkets. Amazon Fresh sells them for a lower price than most stores.

Trader Joe’s Seeds & Grains Crispbread
In our local Trader Joe’s, there are two varieties of these delicious crackers, but only this variety is pictured on the company’s website. I prefer the other variety, Seeds and Grains Crispbread, the one that’s not shown on the website. It contains sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, wholemeal rye flour, oat bran, oatmeal, flaxseed, spelt wheat bran, wheat bran, water, sea salt, salt, oregano, thyme, for a total of 9 different plant foods, though only the seeds and spices are whole plant foods. These crackers are made in Norway.
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If on vacation you do not eat a sufficient quantity and variety of plant foods, your microbiome is going suffer a setback. No worries! You can rehabilitate your microbiome by eating lots of whole plant foods like the ones discussed here and many others. Also, consuming fermented foods, in small amounts and frequently during the day, will help your microbiome to reboot. In addition, make sure to have plenty of water because if you eat more fiber you need more water.

Note: If you are someone who normally does not eat a lot of foods with fiber, go slow and increase your fiber intake gradually. You may want to work with a dietitian to help you do this.

If you find this post useful or have any questions, please leave a comment so we can all benefit from your thoughts.

Thanks and all the best,
Leni

On this blog, I mention specific products in order to make the information more practical. I realize that some people do not have access to the products. So my hope is that for those people, the products will serve as guideposts for their shopping. I am not affiliated with Trader Joe’s. Also, I am not compensated in any way for any product I mention.

CHOCOLATE: Homemade Designer Chocolates

Chocolate tastes WONDERFUL and is GOOD for you — dark (70% or more cocoa) chocolate, in small quantities, that is.

While a chocolate bar with 70% or more cocoa contains lots healthful anti-cancer substances, it also contains saturated fat and sugar – unfortunately.

So…the challenge I gave myself was to figure out how to enrich a 70% cocoa chocolate bar with more cocoa — without creating a bitter or grainy chocolate. With the help of a few enthusiastic German exchange students who happened to be visiting, we came up with some DELICIOUS designer chocolates!

In fact, I think that these chocolates are so good that I plan to give small boxes of assorted Homemade Designer Chocolates for holiday gifts this year (pretty boxes lined with wax or parchment paper and filled with a layer — or a few layers — of assorted Homemade Designer Chocolates)!

HOMEMADE DESIGNER CHOCOLATES

Nutrition and health tip: As with any food that contains sugar, it’s best to consume it at the end of a meal — not between meals. This is because any food containing sugar) when eaten at the end of a meal raises blood sugar less than when eaten between meals. And since blood sugar control is important to preventing cancer, it makes sense to finish off a meal with these delicious chocolates, but not to snack on them between meals.

Designer Variety #1: Coffee Bean Chocolates

Ingredients

About 6 grams of a dark chocolate (70% or more cocoa) chocolate bar

• Why Cocoa? How does cocoa help your body prevent cancer? Which cocoa is the best kind? How can you be sure to get all the benefits from the cocoa you consume?

• Six grams is about 1 square of an Endangered Species Supreme Dark Chocolate 72% bar or ½ square of a Valrhona Le Noir Extra Amer 85% Cocao bar. Just do the math and you’ll know how much chocolate is approximately 6 grams. Most likely it’s a small square or half of a large square.

½ teaspoon of cocoa

• I used the Lake Champlain All Natural Unsweetened Cocoa that I had on hand, but I’m sure that the Hershey’s Cocoa or Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa that most supermarkets carry would be fine, too.

¼ teaspoon crushed coffee beans

• Decaf or regular coffee beans are fine.
• Just crush the beans with a meat tenderizing mallet (if you have one) or the back of a glass.

¼ teaspoon canola oil

½ teaspoon agave nectar

½ teaspoon chopped walnuts

• I used the Trader Joe’s Walnut Baking Pieces

Directions

Note: These directions are for making one piece of chocolate. It’s just easier to explain it that way. But of course, you will be making enough to fill at least one silicone mini-muffin pan.

• Use a sharp knife to cut the chocolate bar into squares (along the scores lines).
• Place a piece of the chocolate bar (about 6 grams) into each opening of a silicone mini muffin pan.
• To the chocolate in the mini muffin compartment, add the cocoa, crushed coffee beans, canola oil, and agave nectar.
• Place a cup of cold water into the microwave oven. This is just to protect the microwave oven, because in the next step you will be heating a small quantity of food and that could harm the microwave oven.  Note:  If you are making more than one bath (pan) of chocolates, then before making each subsequent batch, replace the water in the cup with cold water. This way it will take about the same length of time to melt each batch of the chocolate mixture. Also, this prevents the cup of water from boiling over after several batches!
• Place the silicone mini muffin pan with the chocolate and other ingredients into the microwave oven; heat on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds.
• Remove the silicone mini muffin pan from the microwave oven and using a chopstick (or perhaps a small butter knife), stir the warm chocolate mixture to mix well.
• If needed, heat for another 15 seconds in the microwave oven; stir.
• Sprinkle each chocolate with walnuts, pressing them lightly into the chocolate.
• Place the filled mini muffin pan into the freezer.
• When frozen, pop your Designer Chocolates out of the mini muffin pan and serve. Or store your Designer Chocolates in freezer bags in the freezer for enjoying later.
• Note: These chocolates do not have to be eaten frozen,but they’re very nice frozen or slightly defrosted.
• While I haven’t yet tested this (because they disappear to fast around here), I imagine they can be kept in the refrigerator for a week or more without a problem
• A friend of mine to whom I gave some chocolates put them into a decorative box and kept them on her counter for a few days.

Note: Because these chocolates aren’t high in saturated fat, they will be firm but not hard (unless frozen). When you eat them, you may find that a little chocolate sticks to your warm fingers. That’s fine; just lick! I served these chocolates at a party, and everyone loved them. No one seemed to mind their slightly chocolate smudged fingers.

 

Designer Variety #2: Ginger Cherry Chocolates

I LOVE these Ginger Cherry Chocolates! In fact, now that I’ve tasted these chocolates, plain chocolate bars are rather dull and boring – even the best of them!

Ingredients

6 grams of a chocolate bar with 70% or more cocoa OR 6 grams (2 teaspoons) of chocolate baking pieces (chocolate chips)

Some suitable chocolate products:

• Chocolate bar: Endangered Species Supreme Dark Chocolate 72%
• Chocolate bar: Valrhona Le Noir Extra Amer 85% Cocao
• Chocolate bar note: I don’t suggest the Ghirardelli Chocolate Baking Bar 100% Cocoa because it’s a lot higher in saturated fat than the products I have recommended.
• Chocolate chunks (chips): 365 Dark Chocolate Mini Chunks 70% Cacoa (Whole Foods product)
  • Mini chunks (and chips) are less expensive than chocolate bars.

6  grams of chocolate is equal to…

• about 1 square of an Endangered Species Supreme Dark Chocolate 72% bar
• ½ square of a Valrhona Le Noir Extra Amer 85% Cocao bar.
• 2 teaspoons of 365 Dark Chocolate Mini Chunks 70% Cocoa

½ teaspoon of cocoa

• I used the Lake Champlain All Natural Unsweetened Cocoa that I had on hand, but I’m sure that the Hershey’s Cocoa or Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa that most supermarkets carry would be fine, too.

1/8 teaspoon powdered ginger

¼ teaspoon canola oil

¼ teaspoon agave nectar

3 dried cherries

• For dried cherries, I love the Stoneridge Orchards Cherry Mix (whole dried Montmorency, Balaton, and Bing Cherry Blend) from Costco. These dried cherries are the best I’ve ever tasted and $8.99 for 20 ounces is also a great price. For more about these cherries, see the Monamifood blog entry, Cherries and Berries with Yogurt.

• Use the smaller cherries in this mix. They are sweet and slightly tart.

Directions

Note: These directions are for making one piece of chocolate. It’s just easier to explain it that way. But of course, you will be making enough to fill at least one silicone mini-muffin pan.

• If using chocolate bars, use a sharp knife to cut the chocolate bar into squares (along the scores lines).
• Into one cup of a silicone mini muffin, place a piece of the chocolate bar (about 6 grams) or 2 teaspoons (6 grams) of chocolate mini chunks.
• To the chocolate in the mini muffin cup, add the cocoa, ginger, canola oil, and agave nectar.
• Place a cup of cold water into the microwave oven. This is just to protect the microwave oven, because in the next step you will be heating a small quantity of food and that could harm the microwave oven.  Note:  If you are making more than one bath (pan) of chocolates, then before making each subsequent batch, replace the water in the cup with cold water. This way it will take about the same length of time to melt each batch of the chocolate mixture. Also, this prevents the cup of water from boiling over after several batches!
• Place the silicone mini muffin pan with the chocolate and other ingredients into the microwave oven; heat on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds.
• Remove the silicone mini muffin pan from the microwave oven and using a chopstick (or perhaps a small butter knife), stir the warm chocolate mixture to mix well.
• If needed to completely melt the chocolate, heat for another 15 seconds in the microwave oven; stir.
• Place 3 dried cherries in each muffin cup and press them lightly into the chocolate, just enough so that they’re firmly anchored in the melted chocolate (not submerged).
• Place the filled mini muffin pan into the freezer.
• When frozen, pop your Designer Ginger Cherry Chocolates out of the mini muffin pan and serve.
• Or store your Designer Chocolates in the freezer in freezer bags for enjoying later.
• Note: These chocolates do not have to be eaten frozen,but they’re very nice frozen or slightly defrosted.
• While I haven’t yet tested this (because they disappear to fast around here), I imagine they can be kept in the refrigerator for a week or more without a problem
• A friend of mine to whom I gave some chocolates put them into a decorative box and kept them on her counter for a few days.

Note: Because these chocolates aren’t high in saturated fat, they will be firm but not hard (unless frozen). So when you eat them, you may find a little chocolate sticks to your warm fingers. That’s fine; just lick! I served them at a party, and everyone loved them. No one seems to mind their slightly chocolate smudged fingers!

Designer Variety #3: Cherry Almond Chocolates

These are great too!!!!

Ingredients

6 grams of a chocolate bar with 70% or more cocoa OR 6 grams (2 teaspoons) of chocolate baking pieces (chocolate chips)

Some suitable chocolate products:

• Chocolate bar: Endangered Species Supreme Dark Chocolate 72%
• Chocolate bar: Valrhona Le Noir Extra Amer 85% Cocao
• Chocolate bar note: I don’t suggest the Ghirardelli Chocolate Baking Bar 100% Cocoa because it’s a lot higher in saturated fat than the products I have recommended.
• Chocolate chunks (chips): 365 Dark Chocolate Mini Chunks 70% Cacoa (Whole Foods product)
  • Mini chunks (and chips) are less expensive than chocolate bars.

6  grams of chocolate is equal to…

• about 1 square of an Endangered Species Supreme Dark Chocolate 72% bar
• ½ square of a Valrhona Le Noir Extra Amer 85% Cocao bar.
• 2 teaspoons of 365 Dark Chocolate Mini Chunks 70% Cocoa

½ teaspoon of cocoa

• I used the Lake Champlain All Natural Unsweetened Cocoa that I had on hand, but I’m sure that the Hershey’s Cocoa or Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa that most supermarkets carry would be fine, too.

¼ t canola oil

¼ t agave nectar

2 drops almond extract

• I used Penzeys Spices’ Pure Almond Extract

3 dried cherries

• For dried cherries, I love the Stoneridge Orchards Cherry Mix (whole dried Montmorency, Balaton, and Bing Cherry Blend) from Costco. These dried cherries are the best I’ve ever tasted and $8.99 for 20 ounces is also a great price. For more about these cherries, see the Monamifood blog entry, Cherries and Berries with Yogurt.

• Use the smaller cherries in this mix. They are sweet and slightly tart.

Directions

Follow the directions for the Ginger Cherry Chocolates above, substituting almond extract for the ground ginger.

Enjoy and be healthy!

– Leni