As many of you know, I am a big fan of Dr. Fuhrman. If you haven’t read his book Eat to Live please do! His new book called Super Immunity is equally as informative. He discusses the failure of modern medicine, which foods to focus on for immune health, and cold/flu remedies and medications (both natural and over the counter). For instance, did you know that cough suppressants have not been shown to be effective in clinical studies? This is actually a positive thing since you don’t want to stop your body from coughing when it needs to as it is trying to rid itself of viruses and mucous. You don’t want that stuff stuck in your lungs which can lead to more serious issues. Take Tylenol? Just because you can buy it at your local drugstore doesn’t mean that it’s harmless. Actually it is toxic and can cause liver damage. You’re guaranteed to find this book interesting. There is even a chapter including recipes, which is where I found this one.
Swiss Chard and Sweet Potato Gratin (adapted from page 234 of Super Immunity)
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 pepper, chopped
- 2 cups mushrooms, chopped
- 8 cups Swiss chard, chopped (or any dark leafy green)
- Aprox. 1 lb sweet potatoes, sliced to 1/8″ thickness
- 8 oz tempeh, sliced in thin strips (or 1 can beans)
- 2 cups unsweetened hemp, soy, or almond milk
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup Daiya cheese (or use dairy cheese)
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400
- Lightly oil a 9 X 13″ glass baking dish
- Saute the ginger, onion, and pepper in 1/8 cup water until tender
- Add Swiss chard and mushrooms and cook until softened
- Arrange 1/3 of the sliced sweet potatoes in the bottom of baking dish
- Layer on half the tempeh slices and then half the veggie mixture
- Arrange 1/3 of the sliced sweet potatoes on top of that and follow with the other half of the tempeh and veggies
- Add the final 1/3 of sliced sweet potatoes
- Combine non-dairy milk with nutmeg and black pepper
- Pour this over everything in the baking dish
- Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes
- Remove foil, top with Daiya, and bake for 15 more minutes
I only had about half the amount of the Swiss chard that the recipe called for- the full 8 cups would have made it better. I recommend going heavy on the greens. I also worried that because there was no salt and very little seasoning that it would be too bland. It wasn’t for me- but you can always add some salt, tamari, or other favorite spices to this dish. I thought some tomatoes would be nice to add next time. Note about the Daiya cheese: do not consider this a “health food” but enjoy in moderation occasionally. Everything else in the recipe is super healthy to support super immunity!
What do you believe contributes to maintaining a healthy immune system?
