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Beet Sweet Potato Soup

This Beet Sweet Potato Soup is so creamy and it will boost your energy and keep you healthy!

beet sweet potato soup

Last week I went to my favorite event of the year: The Longevity Conference. It was soooooo amazing! My head is still spinning from all of the awesome new things I learned and of course I came home with big bags filled with new superfoods, herbs, and ingredients to test out for you. I’m bursting at the seams with new info for you… yay!

Each year I feel so lucky to be able to meet so many awesome people at Longevity, and this year was no exception. One of my favorite parts of the weekend was being able to meet Solla Eiriksdottir, a vegetarian chef who I just love. She is so much fun, so creative, and so practical in the kitchen. Beet Sweet Potato Soup is a recipe in her Raw cookbook, so I just had to make a big pot.

First, I have to tell you that beets are one of my favorite ingredients. When I was younger, I used to hate them — I thought they tasted like dirt. Years later, when I became immersed in Chinese medicine and I learned the value of beets, I began playing around with them to make them taste good to me. It’s funny, because my daughter used to say that beets tasted like grass (I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree…) and now, she’s a lover too.

And sweet potatoes… well, who doesn’t like these gems? And do you know about the 5 Health Benefits Of Yams And Sweet Potatoes?

I love to customize recipes for specific health concerns. So, when my clients ask me to put on my health coach and chef’s hats, I often customize recipes for their specific needs.  Let me customize a soup recipe for you that will work for whatever’s going on in your body now… I’m such a geek that I really do get excited about doing this. So CLICK HERE to be taken directly into my calendar to sign up for your free phone consultation… I’d love to create a soup recipe that addresses your specific needs!

Increase Your Athletic PerformanceDownload your free copy of my Optimized Athletic Performance Food Plan ebook now!

Okay, so what’s so great about beets? What am I rambling on about? Well, in Chinese medicine, we know that many illnesses and conditions in the body are caused because the body is not making good quality blood. Beets help the body make high quality blood. Beets are great for energy. They increase athletic performance. They are good for your heart. They help ward of cancer. Need I say more? And, as an added benefit, they just make everything look beautiful — I mean, just look at the color of this beet sweet potato soup!

Now I use beets whenever I can. For this soup, there’s no beet preparation involved except peeling them and cutting them into chunks. Easy peasy. Sometimes I roast them. Sometimes I ferment them. Sometimes I slice them really thin. And, don’t even get me started on beet powder…

Here’s a really simple recipe for the most awesome roasted beets ever: Pomegranate Glazed Beets

beet sweet potato soup

beet sweet potato soup

Here are the healing powers of some of the ingredients in this beet sweet potato soup recipe:

Beets are SO good for you. I try to find ways to fit them into my meals as much as possible. Really… many times a week. Beets nourish blood and tonify the heart. Athletes are starting to drink beet juice as a form of endurance therapy. They are anti-carcinogenic, good for anemia, and relieve constipation. I also think it’s a great idea to eat them raw sometimes because their amazing goodness is even more pumped up this way.

Sweet potatoes are good for your digestive system. They can be good for both constipation and diarrhea. These orange gems also help rid your body of excess water, are good for breast health, help people with diabetes and actually can help ease night blindness. In olden times, it was common in China to rub mashed sweet potatoes on poison insect bites to remove the toxins. I haven’t tried this, but if you see me looking a tad orange, this will be why…

Onions are great for your immune system; they are a natural antihistamine. Recently, I recommended that a patient with bronchitis put sliced raw onions in her socks when she went to sleep… she woke up so much better; they actually can rid the body of bacteria. (I know I’ve told you this before, but it really is awesome!) Onion is a superhero in the food world!

Turmeric is actually a Chinese herb (Jiang Huang). It is great for reducing inflammation throughout the body. If you suffer from aches and pains in your joints, try turmeric. It can help relieve menstrual pain and some other abdominal pains but, if you are pregnant, ask your doctor before you eat too much turmeric.

When you add olive oil to foods, it actually helps deliver the nutritional benefits of your food to your body in a better way. All of the benefits of the food’s color pigments get transported where they need to go. I drizzle a good quality extra-virgin olive oil on top of everything.

beet sweet potato soup

Beet Sweet Potato Soup
4.5 from 2 reviews
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Recipe type: soup
Cuisine: vegan, vegetarian, paleo, whole30
Author:
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6
This is the creamiest, most delicious soup! It's an energy booster that's great for your heart and your digestion.
Ingredients
  • 2 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling on the individual bowls of soup
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 6 small beets, peeled and cut into chunks
  • sea salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 Tbs cumin
  • ¼ tsp smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
  • 5 cups vegetable broth
  • ½ cup unsweetened, plain non-dairy yogurt (I used cashew yogurt)
  • ¼ cup sprouted pumpkin seeds
  • Optional raw Chinese herbs: Shan Yao, Huang Qi
Instructions
  1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.
  2. Add onions and season with salt and pepper.
  3. Cook, stirring often, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes.
  4. Add beets, sweet potatoes, turmeric, cumin, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring for 2 minutes.
  5. Pour in the vegetable broth.
  6. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45-mins or until the beets are softened.
  7. Transfer the soup, in batches, to a blender and blend until completely smooth and silky.
  8. Ladle into bowls and garnish with a big dollop of yogurt, a sprinkling of pumpkin seeds, and a drizzle of olive oil.
  9. Enjoy!

beet sweet potato soup

Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas

sheet pan chicken fajitas

Sheet Pan dinners are all the rage. They are like last year’s kale recipes. Remember when every recipe seemed to have kale in it? Everything has it’s time, and for one pan, oven-baked dinners, that time is now. And nobody is happier than I am! I mean, really, what’s better than putting everything on a single tray, plopping it in the oven, and ending up with a flavorful, well-seasoned, spiced-up, healthy dinner? Nothing. Well, at least that’s how I feel now… I can’t wait to see what the next “in” thing is. So, if you want to jump on the sheet pan dinner bandwagon, you have to try these sheet pan chicken fajitas.

I love Mexican food. But, I try not to go out to eat it too much. It’s dangerous! All those chips… and margaritas… ugh… I have little self-control when it comes to this kind of deliciousness…

So, I healthy things up and make my Mexican meals at home. I used grain-free almond tortillas to wrap up these sheet pan chicken fajitas. And I added turmeric to the spice mix. And lots of scallions. Yup, this is not only delicious, but it’s healing too!

It’s funny, when I was younger I think my recipes were more complicated than they are now.  I guess I got wiser as I got older. This dinner is so easy, yet it tastes as good as my fancy-schmancy Mexican recipes. As a matter of fact, I just told my daughter that she needs to try this one out when she’s cooking at her college house.  Of course, if I was the one cooking at college, I’d be adding some margaritas to the dinner…

For another great sheet pan recipe, try my Roasted Salmon Sheet Pan Dinner.

sheet pan chicken fajitas

sheet pan chicken fajitas

Here are some of the healing ingredients in these awesome sheet pan chicken fajitas:

Chicken is something I push people to buy organic if possible. Organic chicken is a great, healthy protein to give you energy, lessen the pain of some types of arthritis, and boost your system when you are particularly weak — like after surgery or childbirth. People who have some conditions that we consider “excess heat” conditions should limit the amount of chicken they eat. So, if you have an illness that gives you a bright red tongue or severe dryness in your body, check with your doctor first. For example, if you have a lot of burning stomach acid, you should avoid chicken for awhile…

Bell peppers help with indigestion. If you are feeling bloated and full from over-eating a lot lately, consuming bell peppers will help reduce this feeling. They are also good for blood circulation and research has shown that they are good for people with a low appetite or anorexia. It used to be common in China to use green pepper tea to soothe indigestion.

Turmeric is actually a Chinese herb (Jiang Huang). It is great for reducing inflammation throughout the body. If you suffer from aches and pains in your joints, try turmeric. It can help relieve menstrual pain and some other abdominal pains but, if you are pregnant, ask your doctor before you eat too much turmeric.

Scallions, as I tell you often, are one of my favorites. In Chinese medicine, the root of the scallion is a healing herb (Cong Bai). I always keep scallions on hand in my refrigerator so that I can whip up a batch of cold and flu fighting tea (scallion roots and ginger) the second anyone feels that scratchy throat coming on. It helps the body sweat out toxins. Scallions are antiviral and antibacterial; they are good for the common cold and general nasal congestion — just don’t eat too many if you have a fever.

sheet pan chicken fajitas

Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
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Recipe type: chicken, one-pan meal, baked, simple
Cuisine: Mexican, dinner, paleo, whole30, grain free, dairy free
Author:
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
This is the easiest, most delicious Mexican dinner you can make. It's awesome -- better than at your favorite restaurant! And, it's all made on one pan in the oven!
Ingredients
  • 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs (preferably organic), cut into bite-size pieces
  • sea salt and black pepper
  • 1 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 Tbs chili powder
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • ½ tsp smoked paprika
  • 4 scallions, sliced into thirds
  • 2 bell peppers, sliced (any color)
  • grain-free wraps, for serving (or any kind of wraps or tortillas that make you happy)
  • 1 avocado, sliced, for serving
  • ½ cup coconut yogurt mixed with the juice of 1 lime and a sprinkle of sea salt, for serving
  • hot sauce or salsa, for serving
Instructions
  1. Preheat your oven to 400°F.
  2. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
  3. Spread chicken out on the pan.
  4. Add the oil and spices to the chicken and toss well.
  5. Add the bell peppers and scallions and toss again.
  6. Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.
  7. Heat the wraps/tortillas if you like. (I hold mine in a tongs over my gas burner, and char them a bit.)
  8. Remove tray from oven and set it on a trivet or dish cloth on the table. Yup, serve it right in the cooking pan.
  9. Serve the wraps/tortillas alongside and let people make their own.
  10. Serve with avocado, salsa, hot sauce, coconut crema, or whatever makes you smile.
  11. Enjoy!

sheet pan chicken fajitas