Try This Comforting Keto-Friendly Cabbage and Bacon Soup Recipe

Added on Oct 21, 2017 in Dr. Mercola

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Recipe by Pete Evans

I’m sure that many of you have already read my latest book,
“Fat for Fuel” — if you haven’t yet, I encourage you to pick up your copy now,
as it is one of the most important health books you will read in your life — and
you’re determined to incorporate the ketogenic diet into your lifestyle. Now
the challenge is: How can you make sure that the meals you prepare are
keto-friendly? Well, you don’t have to worry — we’ve made it easy for you!

I’m excited to announce that renowned Australian chef and
restauranteur Pete Evans and I are releasing the “Fat for Fuel Ketogenic
Cookbook: Recipes and Ketogenic Keys to Health from a World-Class Doctor and an
Internationally Renowned Chef” November 14. This fantastic resource offers a
wide array of delectable recipes — from appetizers to main courses to snacks
and sweet treats — that all follow the principles of the ketogenic diet.

I am thrilled to have Pete onboard this project, not only
because of his amazing palate and creativity in the kitchen, but also because
his dedication to eating healthy, fat-burning foods is on par with my
principles of achieving nutritional ketosis in order to reach optimal wellness.

To give you a taste of what our cookbook will offer, Pete
has shared one of his healthy recipes below. It combines the freshness of leafy
greens with the rich taste of bacon, plus spices, to make a comforting and
hearty soup that you can sip when the weather turns chilly. Try it today!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 tablespoons coconut
oil

1 onion,
chopped

1/2 pound silverbeet, leafy
green part and stems separated, trimmed and chopped

1/2 pound green cabbage, shredded

1/4 pound rindless bacon

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

6 cups organic chicken
broth

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 large handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves

Procedure:

1.
Melt 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in a large
saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for five minutes, or until
softened. Stir in the garlic, silverbeet stems and cabbage and cook for five
minutes, or until softened.

2.
Melt the remaining oil in a frying pan over
medium-high heat, add the bacon and cook until lightly golden, about four
minutes on each side. Remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel.

3.
Chop the bacon into 1-inch pieces and stir into
the cooked cabbage mixture, then add the turmeric and broth. Bring to a boil,
reduce the heat to low and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30
minutes.

4.
Stir in the leafy green part of the silverbeet
and cook for another five minutes until wilted. Season with salt and pepper. To
finish, stir in the parsley leaves and serve.

This recipe makes four to six servings.

Don’t Underestimate
the Health Benefits of Cabbage

Many people simply pass
by and ignore cabbage when they see it in the produce section, not knowing that
it actually offers a barrage of benefits. This humble cruciferous vegetable
comes loaded with powerful antioxidants like
vitamins A and C, as well as phytonutrients sulforaphane, lutein, zeaxanthin
and thiocyanates. These nutrients not only stimulate detoxifying enzymes, but
they also provide protective effects against certain cancers like breast, colon
and prostate.

You can also help
reduce inflammation by adding cabbage to your meals, as it offers a wealth of
anti-inflammatory nutrients like anthocyanins. You can also get your fair share
of B vitamins, including folate, B6, B1 and B5. These B vitamins not only help
boost your energy levels, but also help slow shrinkage in brain regions that
are impacted by Alzheimer’s disease by as much as sevenfold.

Another wonderful
thing about cabbage is that it offers variety; red, green and Savoy are some
examples that you can enjoy, each with its own wealth of nutrients. Although
best eaten raw, such as in coleslaw, it wouldn’t hurt to add cabbage to your
cooked meals every once in a while.

If you’re an avid
gardener, you can also try growing cabbage at home. This vegetable has a long
growing season and can thrive in both warm and cold-weather climates. Check out
my article “All About Growing Cabbage” for more helpful tips. [ECF1]

Have You Heard of ‘Silverbeets’
Before?

You’ll probably answer “no,” but you’ll be surprised to know that silverbeet
is actually just another name for Swiss chard. While not as popular as other
greens like spinach and broccoli, this leafy vegetable offers its own array of
benefits, thanks to its impressive nutrient profile. It’s a good source of
vitamin C that help fight free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS), as
well as phytonutrients that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Silverbeet offers
vitamins K and A, and antioxidants like alpha carotene, beta carotene,
zeaxanthin and astaxanthin. And just like cabbage, it’s rich in B vitamins like
folate, B6, thiamin, niacin and pantothenic acid.[ECF2] [i]

Can Bacon Actually Be
Healthy for You?

While it’s true that most processed meats like hotdogs,
sausages and salami can wreak havoc on your well-being, I believe that the
devil’s in the details. Bacon, for example, can be potentially healthy but only
if it is prepared properly and the meat is acquired from high-quality sources.

Bacon
from pasture raised pigs provides good amounts of healthy saturated and
monounsaturated fat, mainly
oleic acid, which is also found in olive oil.[ii] It also offers palmitoleic acid, which has
antimicrobial properties, phosphatidylcholine that possesses antioxidant
activity superior to vitamin E and fat-soluble vitamin D.

However,
do not buy processed bacon sold in supermarkets or groceries, as that is likely
loaded with health-harming preservatives. Instead, I advise getting bacon that
has been prepared using time-tested traditional methods, so you can ensure that
no unhealthy additives are added to the meat. See if your local farmer who
raises pastured pigs offers this type of meat. [ECF3]

About Pete Evans

Pete Evans is an
internationally renowned chef who has joined forces with Dr. Mercola to create
a healthy cookbook that’s loaded with delicious, unique Keto recipes, ideal for
people who want to switch to a ketogenic diet. The “Fat for Fuel Ketogenic
Cookbook” will be released November 14.

Pete has had numerous noteworthy
contributions to the culinary world. He has not only cooked for the general
public, but he’s also cooked a royal banquet for the Prince and Princess
of Denmark, a private dinner for Martha Stewart, and even represented his
hometown at the gala GʼDay USA dinner for 600 in New York City. Pete’s
career has moved from the kitchen into the lounge room with many TV appearances
including Lifestyle Channel’s “Home show,” “Postcards from Home,” “FISH,” “My Kitchen
Rules” and “Moveable Feast.”[RS4]

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