Mbuya Mavhu's Feel Better Turmeric Soup

I make this soup for folks healing from personal loss, illness or childbirth. I really don't like having to read through a whole lot of chatter to get to the recipe so here's the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons olive oil

• One large white onion chopped

• One good sized knob of garlic (about the length of your thumb) peeled and sliced

• Two stalks celery chopped

• Four carrots peeled and chopped

• Half a cup mixed hearty mushrooms like portabella, cremini & shiitake

• 5 peeled and sliced garlic cloves

• 4/5 cups chicken stock - store bought or homemade

• 1 bay leaf

• 2 tablespoons organic turmeric

• Half teaspoon red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper

• 1 can chick peas

• 1 shredded rotisserie chicken or 5-6 pre-cooked boned, skinned & shredded chicken thighs (leaving skin on two of the thighs is optional)

• half a bag of egg noodles (if you are carb counting substitute with half a bag of kale)

• salt & pepper

Method

1. Heat olive oil in soup pot or on saute mode in instant pot

2. Add onions, garlic, celery, carrots, garlic, and ginger - season with salt, pepper & red pepper flakes. Cook about 2 minutes.

3. Add turmeric and be careful, it stains everything.

4. Add can of chickpeas (include the liquid), chicken, bay leaf and finally chicken stock

5. Add noodles

6. Add mushrooms last

7. In instant pot cook on medium for 15 minutes. On stove top boil soup on medium low for about 40 minutes.

8. serve hot or deliver to your loved one in mason jars.

For postpartum moms- ginger, turmeric and chick peas are galactogogues (foods that help you make breastmilk). Protein is good for healing your body.