I had originally planned to post a “Put a Spring in Your Step Menu” next weekend to celebrate the official advent of spring March 19.  But with the spread of coronavirus and the stock market in free fall, it just didn’t seem appropriate.  It is hard not to be anxious in times like these. So I looked back at the article I posted in my most recent Dishing It Up blog post, Feeling Anxious About the Coronavirus and the Flu? Eat This and, instead, created this Anti-Viral Anti-Anxiety Menu from these foods.

I challenged myself to include all the recommended foods in a single day’s menu.  And I’m happy to report that I succeeded.  Well, sort of…instead of cherry juice I used whole cherries.  I’m guessing you weren’t expecting dark chocolate and cherries making an appearance at breakfast or blueberries and yogurt as dessert!

I hope you enjoy the recipes.  Remember to always wash your hands thoroughly before preparing food and before eating.  And please feel free to share this menu with your family and friends (while keeping two metres away from them for the time being).  Stay healthy and don’t forget to breathe – ideally outside in the fresh air!  Exercise is a great stress-reducer and it’s fantastic for lung health.  Sign up here to receive the recipes and see you in April!

Anti-Viral, Anti-Anxiety Menu

Breakfast:  Cherry Chocolate Buckwheat Porridge (chocolate contains theobromine, an immune-boosting antioxidant, and it makes me happy)

Lunch:  Slow Cooker Chicken Soup (the Greek physician Galen recommended chicken soup as a cure for fever, among other things, in the second century AD – read on about its immune boosting properties below; I always add a few handfuls of dark leafy greens to soup)

Afternoon Tonic:  Warm Citrus, Maple & Ginger Tonic (the throat-soothing honey in this drink may help with a cough and has anti-viral properties, as does the ginger)

Dinner: Coconut Chickpea Curry (this contains three foods from the list, including broccoli for vitamin C, ginger, and red onions – see below)

Dessert: Blueberry Almond Frozen Yogurt (this is super simple to make and elicits happy thoughts of warmer weather to come)

Join The Nutritional Reset community here to receive this month’s menu today (as well as each month to come)!  And read on for some nutritional tidbits about a few foods featured in the recipes…

A few featured foods

Chicken Soup

This soup is comforting, hydrating and high in protein, important for immune function as antibodies and immune system cells rely on protein. Beyond the benefits listed in the article, a 2012 study published in the American Journal of Therapeutics suggested that carnosine, a compound found in chicken, may help inhibit pro-inflammatory conditions generally associated with the first stages of viral infections.  And according to a 1998 Coping With Allergies and Asthma report, chicken soup also improves the function of nasal cilia.  These are the tiny hairlike projections that help prevent contagions from entering our bodies.

 

Red Onion

The article A made-in-Canada solution to the coronavirus outbreak?, describes how a Montreal lab is doing clinical trials in China testing their hypothesis that a derivative of quercetin, a plant compound known to help lower cholesterol and treat inflammatory disease, is a “broad spectrum” antiviral drug that could fight a range of viruses, including COVID-19. And guess what? Red onion is rich in quercetin, as are the broccoli, blueberries and bell peppers found in this menu.

 

 

Cooking your own food is the single most impactful step you can take to improve your health and energy!

I hope you enjoy the recipes in my Anti-Viral, Anti-Anxiety Menu.  Sign up here to receive the download link for this latest Menu of the Month.  And if you want to cook more of your own food but don’t know what to make or have the time to organize your own menus and shopping lists, The Nutritional Reset offers a meal planning service.  It makes preparing tasty, nutritious meals a snap. Click here to find out more.