I love this easy and quick-to-prepare recipe that you can freeze easily. This is one of my favourite recipe to support your immune system. This recipe combines zinc-rich beans, beta-carotene in pumpkin for healthy mucus membranes, immune boosting phytonutrients in shiitake mushrooms combined with the antiviral properties of garlic.

Serve : 4

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger
• 1 cup adzuki beans, soaked overnight
• 1/2 butternut pumpkin
• 4-6 shiitake mushrooms
• 1 stick of kombu
• 1 litre water or stock
• sea salt and pepper
• tamari, to taste

Preparation

Sauté onions in olive oil until soft, then add the garlic and ginger. Cook for a further minute.
Add beans, pumpkin, mushrooms, kombu and water or stock to the pot and bring to the boil. Lower heat and simmer.
When mushrooms are soft, take them out of the pot and remove stems. Slice caps finely and put back into pot, do the same with the kombu.
Cook casserole until beans are soft, then season as desired.

Tips

This is nice served with brown rice or quinoa, or cooked in individual winter pumpkins that have been baked in the oven with the seeds removed.