Greek Basil and Borlotti Bean Soup

I was given, gifted with some organic Borlotti beans this year to grow and they are in the soil.

Apparently they are easy to grow and provide a high yield. In return, the above painting was gifted.

This week I made some soup with borlotti beans to see how I shall cook with these beans and whether I like to eat them, whether they suit my taste buds.

My Borlotti Bean soup is with Greek Basil due to a recent Alexandra dream.

For this nutritional soup the following was included:

A few chopped garlic cloves, saute in Virgin olive oil, with a chopped red onion, half a sweet red pepper and a couple of carrots cut small with a handful of fresh celery.

Include a potato sliced and cut small, and tomatoes at the next stage with some water prior to including the Greek Basil and some fresh coriander leaves. I also included a few small slices of ham and salami cut small, as I had some that had to be eaten.

When the ingredients are cooked, include some more water prior to including a tin of borlotti beans. Just allow it to simmer, and add some black pepper to taste.

Leave it to simmer until the soup thickens naturally. Just prior to serving include some fresh spinach leaves for extra colour. Borlotti beans have a nutty chestnut flavour and a creamy texture.

It makes a lovely soup, a new soup for you to try and put on your menu's.  This link provides you with some nutritional data on these beans. The Italian borlotti bean is also popular in Portugal. These beans are beneficial to pregnant women, and there are a lot of health gains from these beans.

http://www.borlotti.com

https://www.dovemed.com/healthy-living/natural-health/7-health-benefits-of-borlotti-bean/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranberry_bean

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ghK9944c_s

Basil also called great basil or Saint-Joseph's-wort, a culinary herb and medicinal. In Greece, Basil is the royal/kingly plant, it was placed upon the altars and was used to sprinkle holy water.

Some say that cooking basil takes away its power. However, as we know, water holds memory, and the Greeks like blessing the water with basil. So I can easily view the Greek Basil as a blessing upon the soup. Whether you include the basil at the beginning of the cooking or at the end. Of course you could also do both. Basil oil is great too and you can make it with the herbs that you grow.

http://www.completely-crete.com/blessing-of-the-waters.html

My soup was served with mozzarella cheese on the top. I like mozzarella as it doesn't have yeast in it. The same with cream cheese, or Greek Feta cheese, that doesn't have yeast in it either.

I do like Italian and Greek cuisine. I could call this soup my Kyriacos soup. You could also include some black olives in it too. Borlotti beans otherwise known as "cranberry beans' are great for building muscle strength, and they are great in salads.

Basil is recommended for people with any "arthritic conditions" or "digestive" conditions. I like basil very much and I enjoy growing it and cooking with it. I like to grow three different types of basil, Greek Basil, small leaf, larger leaf Basil, and Purple Basil. It is definitely one of my favourite herbs.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/266425.php

Cooking as always been my relaxation time in my adult life, therapeutic, creative and peaceful. I was blessed with a mum that was a great cook, she was also willing to try different foods, she was open to us introducing her to different foods for the first time too.

Open hearted, adventurous, creatives, make great cooks and great food for all of the family. Then when you include the healing and health aspects, and the science of it, it's truly WOW! The Ancient Greeks certainly knew about science and the power of the basil.

The Greeks and the Italians are some of the most healthiest people in Europe, their diet and sunshine certainly is a high contributory factor in that. They also eat a lot of salads, fresh salads. Tomatoes are great for the prostate, and olives are brilliant for the skin.

The ancient olive groves and the scientists say that garlic is now the number 1 "anti-cancer", food. So how much garlic do you eat each day, ponder upon it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgI5HQoZa9c