The Dentist: Soup Needed

Part of a big move to a new region involves finding a whole new set of folks to provide medical help: a family practice person, an ob/gyn, an opthalmologist or optometrist, and a dentist.

I went to the new dentist who accepted me as a patient earlier this week–on Tuesday. Apparently my mouth is a MESS: old teeth about to break, old worn-out crowns, and, yes, some cavities, one of which is under the old crown. Some of this mess is the result of the lack of care in the covid years, but some is just a factor of having old teeth.

Going to the dentist is and always has been a real stress producer for me. Add in the Histamine Intolerance issue, and let’s just say there is…high stress.

Anyway, I went Thursday for the replacement of the first two crowns–near each other on the bottom right. I didn’t sleep much the night before…

This dentist is a woman–and I have had men for 20 years now. And both were good dentists. But can I just say I have fallen into dental nirvana with this new dentist and her assistant. I have never before been so carefully and helpfully treated–and I came home with temporary crowns, no pain, and feeling I was in really good hands–literally.

On Tuesday, to prepare, I made a bone broth from the chicken bones and organs I had frozen in recent weeks–with added onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. I think now that bay leaf might also have been involved. If an onion is free of any mold, I add the peels as well as the skins add lovely color. On Wednesday, I made a soup so I would have soft, nourishing food on Thursday after the morning appointment.

Now, I know I’ve posted the making of soup many times on this blog, but this soup is one with a southern flare.

Here’s the base–onions, garlic, carrots, orange bell pepper, a few COLLARD leaves chopped up, some little round potatoes quartered, dried herbs, sea salt, and two packages of boneless chicken thighs with the skin on as the best nutrients and fats are just under the skin. I sautéed the veggies in duck fat–only adding the fresh garlic after the veggies were started so it does not burn as it would if you just dump it into hot fat. I cooked the veggies, turning them often, until they started to color/caramelize, and then added the chicken to cool down the mixture so it didn’t burn. You can see the caramelization in the bottom of the pan–don’t let things burn at the point before you add your raw meat. *Note that it is this caramelization step that makes a soup have rich robust flavor and a beautiful color.

Next, I added the bone broth. Look at its rich, dark color and the lovely fat now in the soup. Good fats DO NOT MAKE YOU FAT! They give one sturdy, long, even energy for hours and hours. Too many grain-based carbs and fruits are what make you fat.

When I chopped veggies for my soup, I also made my lunch salad–using the leftover steak I grilled on Tuesday. See the fresh dill here and there? The salad only needs to be drizzled with the lovely olive oil from Organic Roots now. Look! I’ll be eating a rainbow.

Next, I added the frozen veggies: corn, peas, and OKRA! And more dried herbs.

And here’s my soup after bringing it to a simmer and cooking about 20 minutes–just long enough to soften the carrots and potatoes. I often just turn off the pot at this point and let the soup sit quietly as the veggies will soften in the cooling heat. And I did that this time–coming back later to freeze about half of this soup in two batches and to transfer the rest to a big bowl to be placed in the refrigerator so I would have soup all ready on Thursday.

I had my salad lunch on the screened porch, while I worried about going to the new dentist and all that is wrong in my mouth, and read for a bit to hide out from my brain.

And writing this tale of a new dentist and soup this morning is making me profoundly grateful for the gifts the universe/life has bestowed on me during these past months.

The mouth will be fixed, and I will be fine. And I have soup waiting for the next dental visit.