This über-simple recipe is great when you get "that feeling"... you know, the one when you're about to come down with something. This is my very first course of action for myself or a family member. Make a big pot of it and sip on it throughout the day from your favorite mug.

Recipe by Annemarie Colbin, from Food and Healing, (one of my very first nutrition tomes!).

GARLIC MISO SOUP

1 quart water or stock = 4 cups
1 whole head of garlic cloves, peeled
1 heaping tablespoon miso, or to taste

Simmer the garlic cloves in the water or stock for 15 minutes; fish them out and put them in the blender with a little stock and the miso; puree, return to pot with the rest of the stock, adjust taste, and serve hot.

Tip: never add miso to boiling water since boiling destroys the active enzymes in the live miso.