Fertility Glow Soup

By: Fertility Expert Kim Sjoblad

The History

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There’s nothing like a good soup on a cold day. We often think of it as comfort food but what we normally don’t think of it as fertility boosting food.

Soup, particularly home made bone broth, has been used for centuries in many traditional cultures. It’s recognized as one of the most nutritious, healing, fertility-enhancing food. It is believed in Chinese medicine that the bones hold Jing, which is thought of as our ‘essence’.

Inside The Fertility Boosting Soup

This powerful fertility boosting concoction is a result of the marrow inside the bones. The marrow contains fats, proteins and some minerals like calcium, potassium and magnesium that seep out into the broth making it rich and nutrient-dense. Those struggling with infertility issues can benefit greatly from drinking a cup of bone broth daily.

Bone broth is the base to many soup recipes including this fertility boosting soup!

Bone Broth Recipe

• 2-3 carrots
• 2-3 sticks celery
• 2 leeks
• 2 cups chopped green beans
• 1 cup of cooked quinoa
• 6 cups of home made bone broth (recipe below)
• sea salt

Peel and roughly slice the carrots. Slice the celery. Chop the green beans. Cut the ends off the leeks, quarter them lengthways, wash them under running water and cut them into 1cm slices. Place in a large pot and add the bone broth. Give the soup a good stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes with the lid on. Season with sea salt and serve.

Fertility Boosting ingredients:

Carrots contain beta-carotene, which the body converts into vitamin A. That helps to produce the female sex hormones important for ovulation. In a recent study, carrots were also found to boost sperm quantity and quality by up to eight percent.

Leeks are rich with carotene, vitamin C, calcium, iron and other nutrients and help stabilize blood sugar levels (so important for women with a hormone imbalance). It can also help to boost libido and promote fertility in men.

Green beans are rich in iron and folic acid. Consuming more iron and folic acid from plant sources such as green beans appears to promote fertility, according Harvard Medical School’s Harvard Health Publications. One cup of green beans provides approximately 10% of daily folic acid needs and 6% of iron.

Quinoa is a gluten-free, complex carbohydrate rich in folic acid, fiber and zinc. It also keeps the blood sugar level stable and helps regulate ovulation. One cup of quinoa contains 8 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber, and 15% of the recommended daily intake of iron. Quinoa is also known to support baby brain development.

Bone Broth

My favorite bone broth recipe is adapted from the book ‘Nourishing Traditions’ by Sally Fallon.

• Leftover bones from 1 whole organic roasted chicken.
• 4 quarts filtered water
• 2 T apple cider vinegar
• 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
• 2 carrots peeled and coarsely chopped
• 3 celery stick coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 2 bay leaf
• 5 cloves garlic crushed
• sea salt

Add all ingredients to a large pot. Be sure that the water covers the chicken and vegetables. Bring to low boil. Removing the film that rises to the surface upon boiling. Lower heat and simmer for 6-24 hours. The longer you let this simmer, the richer and more flavorful it will be. Once you’re satisfied with the flavor, let cool. Remove chicken, strain stock into glass jars, and store in refrigerator or freezer. Making bone broth may seem like a big task but it is really very simple. Although it simmers for hours, you can really just set it and forget it.