These three soups provide different qualities to help balance he doshas throughout Autumn. Although Autumn is considered Vata season, dominated by air and space, It’s not only Vata dosha that feels the change in season. By observing the qualities of the doshas we can bring balance and nourishment by eating according to our Ayurvedic type.
Sweet, smokey butternut squash soup for Vata dosha
Butternut squash soup for me is Autumn food. Its sweet taste is ideal for balancing Vata dosha. Vata may find soups made with beans and pulses a little dry in Autumn, due to their astringent qualities. They may make you feel bloated of have excess gas in your tummy. I love this soup as it’s warming, sweet and nourishing – just what Vata needs this time of year.
I’ve used Pipali (long pepper) in this recipe to give a warming quality without being too pungent. Sweet, smokey paprika and dry Ancho chillies add a sweet smokey flavour, which is so satisfying.
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash
- 1 medium onion
- 1 dry ancho chilli (soaked and de-seeded)
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1/2 tsp fenugreek powder
- 2/3 cloves garlic
- Couple tbs olive oil
- 4 long pepper pods – ground
- 750mls veg stock
- Salt to taste
How to:
Peel, de-seed and chop the squash. Rough chop onion. Add crushed garlic cloves. Sauté in oil until for 5 mins.Soak Ancho chilli in boiling water for 10 mins. De-seed and roughly chop. Add dry spices to pan and cook for a further 10 mins, stirring occasionally. Add chopped chilli, cook a little further then add stick. Simmer until everything is soft. Blend with a stick blender if you like it smooth….I do.
White bean soup with spinach for Pitta dosha
Pitta dosha really benefits from the astringent qualities from beans. I tend to soak the beans for longer than is 
recommended. I usually soak for around 24 hours, as my Vata digestion can be affected by the dry nature of the beans. The bitter qualities from the fenugreek, celery and spinach is ideal to balance Vata dosha.
Ingredients:
- 150g dry cannellini beans or 1 tin.
- 2 sticks celery
- 2 leeks
- 2/3 cloves garlic
- 1 small bag spinach
- 1tsp fenugreek powder
- Couple tbs olive oil
- 4 long pepper pods. This gives warmth without being too pungent.
- Salt to taste
- 750mls veg stock
How to:
Roughly chop vegetables and garlic. Add to oil and cook until soft. Add pepper, fenugreek power and salt. Cook for a further 5-10mins. Add half of cooked beans and water and simmer for around 30mins. Blend until smooth. Add the remaining beans and spinach and simmer for a further 5 mins.
Light, nourishing ‘Minestrone’ fro Kapha dosha
I really love making soup, so when researching soup making traditions I found out that minestrone isn’t just the tomato and pasta based soup, it whatever is fresh and seasonal with the addition of beans, maybe pasta, maybe potatoes. So my minestrone is what was in my organic veg box with cannellini beans. Kapaha dosha benefits from lighter soups, warm with long pepper and astringent from the beans.
Ingredients:
- 2 leeks
- 2 stick celery
- 2 carrots
- 2-3 tomatoes
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- Couple tbs olive oil
- 150g beans – soaked.
- 4 long pepper pods
- salt to taste
- 750mls veg stock
Chop all vegetales. Add veg, salt and pepper to pan. Sauté in oil for 10-15mins. Add beans and veg stock. Simmer for 20 mins. That’s it – super easy and delicious.