Fertility Food | Warming Sweet Potato Lentil Stew
In TCM, it’s essential that you have warming foods to prepare the body for pregnancy. Here’s a recipe that not only boosts fertility, but tastes fantastic too!
FOODS FOR FERTILITY
Dark, leafy greens: Kale, spinach, and Swiss chard contain essential prenatal nutrients like calcium, iron, and folate. These are also super beneficial for preventing birth defects
Sweet potatoes: These are rich in beta-carotene, which is known to help boost the production of the hormone progesterone
Lentils: Packed with folic acid, these help to keep fatigue at bay and they are also helpful in boosting male fertility. Lentils contain polyamine spermidine, a compound that may help sperm fertilize an egg. The benefits of eating lentils extend beyond conception—folic acid helps form the neural tube (which functions as the early brain and spine during pregnancy).
To ensure your body is producing new cells that will be crucial to a healthy pregnancy, the CDC recommends women take 400 micrograms of folic acid each day.
RECIPE
Serves 2-3
1. Chop 1 medium yam, 1 medium leek, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 one inch knob of ginger
2. Heat avocado oil over stovetop, add leek, ginger, garlic and stir
3. Add a 1/2 t of turmeric, 1/2 t of cinnamon, 1/2 t cumin, 1/2 t of coriander, s & p
4. Add in sweet potatoes and 3/4 cup of green lentils
5. Add in 3/4 cup of bone broth, 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of bone broth
6. Keep on medium until boiling. Then let it simmer until potatoes are tender
7. Finish with a handful of chopped dark, leafy greens and cilantro
For more warming recipes, be sure to check out:
Our plant-based expert, ABBIE BEAR
Abbie studied nutrition at Chapman University from 2012 until 2016 and became a certified yoga instructor in 2015 at Ra Yoga. After having her own health struggles, Abbie credits yoga and her nutrition education to saving her -- body and mind. Through her experience of recipe testing in Los Angeles and working at a holistic cancer center, her drive to understand and educate herself on nutrition only continues to grow. She currently advises in nutrition and teaches yoga in Orange County.