Food and Fitness 2022

The decorations are dismantled, festive leftovers are gone and the Christmas season is over for another year. This is the busiest month of the year for gyms as many people make diet and fitness resolutions on January 1st. 

I track my bike rides on the app Strava and have my tally for 2021. This was the first year I rode my bike at least a couple of times every month of the year. My mileage totals are very modest but I am pleased with my consistency over the year. I try to take the stairs at work and my daily step count is in the recommended range as well. The right kind of activity goes a long way in easing chronic pain in arthritic joints. My Giant cruiser bike which I bought in 2012 has been a great investment and other than replacing the seat stem and tires, it has needed few repairs.

I am well aware of the importance of maintaining muscle strength, flexibility and aerobic capacity as the years add up. Frailty is deadly and resisted exercise is required to maintain and improve bone and muscle strength. I only use five-pound weights for my upper extremity routine but also add some bodyweight exercises such as pushups and squats.  My patients give me motivation (I don't want to end up in hospital), and I also want to be able to enjoy activities with our grandchildren. There are so many good reasons to develop a simple exercise routine that can be done consistently. 

Truth be told, I enjoy good food, particularly holiday baking, and December is always a month of overindulgence. January is a good time to cut back and reintroduce healthy eating habits. Our mother always had a trim figure and if she put on a bit of weight, she would make a big pot of healthy soup and eat a bowl for lunch and dinner for a few days. January is going to be soup month at our house in 2022!

I used to buy a product called Better than Bouillon and used it as a base for vegetarian soups. It is quite pricey and I went through it quickly, so I looked for a way to make a good vegetable soup base that did not require boxed broth or powdered broth granules. This recipe is a bit labour intensive, but it makes enough vegetable broth base to last us for several months. I made a double batch a couple of weeks ago. The ingredients cost $25.00 but it is much cheaper and much tastier than store-bought bouillon. It has a LOT of salt, but you only need one teaspoon of the finished product per cup of water. Because of the high salt ratio, it can be used from the freezer as it maintains the consistency of a slushie when frozen. All the ingredients for a double recipe are pictured on the right except you need a couple more carrots.

Vegetable Bouillon Base (from A Veggie Venture)

5 ounces (150 grams) leeks, white and light-green parts only

Consistency in food processor

7 ounces (200 grams) fennel bulb, chopped
7 ounces (200 grams) carrot, chopped
3.5 ounces (100 grams) celery, chopped
3.5 ounces (100 grams) celery root (celeriac)
1 ounce (30 grams) sun-dried tomatoes
3.5 ounces (100 grams) shallot, peeled
3 medium garlic cloves
9 ounces (250 grams) kosher salt (about 1 cup)
1.5 ounces (40 grams) parsley
2 ounces (60 grams) cilantro

Method:

Chop the vegetables in chunks of an inch or less and add them to a food processor. I layer the vegetables and some of the salt as it helps liquify things faster. The food processor will not get the vegetables to a smooth paste, so I use my blender after processing the vegetables and adding all the salt. It is best to blend small batches at a time until smooth. The blender step is optional.

Consistency using blender as well

The finished product can be placed in jars or tubs suitable for the freezer. A single recipe makes about 3-1/2 cups of concentrate which is equivalent to about 40 quarts or litres of broth when used at a ratio of 1 teaspoon/cup of water. 

I love this vegetable combination, particularly the addition of fennel and celeriac, but other vegetables and herbs could be used. I would be careful to maintain the weight of vegetables to salt ratio. It is important to use a kitchen scale to measure the ingredients.

Tonight we had Black Bean Tortilla Soup and perhaps I will make a roasted vegetable soup tomorrow. The possibilities are endless. I sometimes add a spoonful of bouillon base and a spoonful of low salt miso to two cups of boiling water for a delicious broth drink. Mom used to add a beef oxo cube to a mug of boiling water for a hot drink, but this recipe is tastier.

Here's to a happy, healthy year of 2022!