Roasted Garlic Healing Soup

When we think of healthy foods we often don’t consider garlic but this little pungent guy can certainly pack a nutritional punch! Historically, garlic was used as a powerful, natural curative for many illnesses fighting off viruses and bacteria.  There is a plethora of information out there on garlic and its proposed health benefits.  Folklore also tells us that people used garlic to ward off the plague and use it as protection to ward off evil so vampires beware!

Garlic is a powerful antioxidant, an excellent source of vitamin B6, as well as a very good source of selenium, manganese and vitamin C. It’s also a good source of calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium and copper. Garlic may play a role in heart health, cancer prevention, immunity, brain health and much more.

This soup is as the title states, packed with garlic, so yes it does have a strong garlic taste but the cooking and roasting help the garlic to mellow. Wikipedia states that the well-known phenomenon of “garlic breath” is allegedly alleviated by eating fresh parsley so you may want to follow this soup up with munching on a sprig of parsley or two.

This recipe was developed after roasting garlic for a pumpkin hummus recipe I was working with last week. I had extra roasted garlic and started looking up ways to use it. There are many variations of garlic soup out there but I like this one that uses potatoes to add a thick and creamy texture. Roasting the garlic adds the sweet caramelized garlic taste. Some garlic soup recipes add parmesan cheese toward the end, some add bacon and others pair it with a toasted crostini or croutons. These are all wonderful variations, I just like keeping it pure and simple.

• Garlic is a powerful antioxidant and contains many beneficial compounds that have been linked to a host of proposed health benefits.
• Leeks also contain many noteworthy flavonoid anti-oxidants, minerals, and vitamins that have proven health benefits.