The weather has officially turned crisp and cool. We’ve swapped our Birkenstocks, slides, and Crocs for Ugg boots and fluffy slippers. Peeling ourselves out of our cosy doona cocoon each morning feels nearly impossible. Whether you love it or hate it, winter is officially here!
Personally, I’m missing the balmy days of summer, but alas, here we are. What’s a girl to do but find little ways to make the most of it? So, here is one of my favourite ways to cure my winter blues… comfort food!
Soup… But Make It Satisfying
This thai-inspired, plant-based pumpkin soup has got to be one of my favourite recipes I have made in a little while! As I mentioned in the reel over on our instagram page, soup usually isn’t something that comes to my mind as a satisfying dinner on its own. Maybe it’s just me, but when I think about soup.. I think about the fact that I am probably still going to be hungry by the end of my meal.
The Secret to a Nourishing, Satisfying Meal
As a student dietitian (and almost sports nutritionist), I took it upon myself to turn this into a meal that has all the ticks of approval to make it qualify as a balanced, satisfying meal. Aka: sufficient macronutrients (Carbohydrates, Protein and Fats,) as well as micronutrients, such as Vitamin A (hello, beta carotene from pumpkin!).
You might be wondering… how does a plant based recipe have enough protein? I am so glad you asked!
Plant-Based ≠ Mean Protein Poor
It is a really common misconception that those on vegan or vegetarian diets can’t get enough protein. However, this is actually not true! With proper planning, and nutrition education, it is actually really achievable to consume enough protein (Tayarani-Najaran et al. 2024), whether you follow a plant-based diet every day or just enjoy the occasional meat-free meal like this one.
A Quick Guide to Protein Quality
Stay tuned for our up and coming blog for a more in-depth dive on all things protein, but essentially, there are two types of protein. Complete and incomplete.
A complete protein contains all nine essential amino acids that our bodies can’t make on their own, meaning we need to obtain them through food. Examples of complete protein sources include animal products like meat, milk, yoghurt, and cheese, as well as soy-based foods such as tofu, tempeh, and soy milk which can interestingly, have been shown to have similar amino acid profiles to animal-based products (Ciuris et al, 2019)
On the other hand, an incomplete source of protein lacks one or more of these essential amino acids. Examples include foods like nuts, seeds, legumes, beans, whole grain bread, and peanut butter. Top tip: you can combine two different incomplete protein sources to form a complete protein, this is called complementary protein pairing (more on this in our up and coming protein blog!).
For our recipe today, we are using: tofu: a plant-based complete source of protein.
Why Pumpkin Might Make You Glow (Literally)
If you’ve seen the TikTok trend claiming carrots can give you a “natural fake tan,” then you probably already know where this is going.
Essentially, there was a trend where people would eat copious amounts of carrots every day, to tan their skin. I’ve included some images (screenshots from TikTok) below so you don’t have to go down that rabbit hole yourself (you’re welcome!).
Essentially, orange vegetables like carrots, pumpkin and sweet potato are rich in beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is a type of carotene and precursor to Vitamin A. What this means, is that your body can convert beta-carotene into retinol, the active form of vitamin A, which is essential for immune function, vision, and skin health.
When you consume a large amount of beta-carotene over time, more than what your body can convert into retinol/Vitamin A, the excess build up in the bloodstream and gets stored in your fat tissue (as Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin) and the outer layer of the skin.
⚡️Bonus tip: As a fat-soluble vitamin, vitamin A is absorbed more efficiently when consumed with a source of dietary fat. The addition of coconut milk in this recipe not only contributes to a creamy, satisfying texture but also enhances the absorption of beta-carotene from the pumpkin. This combination supports optimal utilisation of vitamin A in the body, which plays an essential role in immune function, skin integrity, and vision. (Carazo et al, 2021)
Because beta-carotene is a pigment, this buildup can give your skin a yellow-orange tint, especially on the palms, soles, and sometimes the face.
This harmless and temporary condition is called carotenodermia, and it usually resolves once beta-carotene intake returns to normal (Kapsetaki & Papageorgiou, 2023). So, while there’s a lot of nutrition misinformation floating around social media, this one is actually kind of true… even if it is technically a condition.
But don’t worry, I promise that this soup won’t turn you orange. Unless you’re eating buckets of it every day, which you may want to do exactly just that after trying this recipe for yourself!
As always, if you give this recipe a go, I’d love to see your creations! Tag us at @premiumpilatesandfitness & @faithdietitian to share your masterpiece. Your version might just inspire someone else’s next meal!
