There’s an old Italian saying for most things, but it won’t surprise you that they are particularly prolific when it comes to food. Old proverbs about when and how to enjoy one’s food are numerous in the Italian language. As a culture Italians are known to have incredibly high standards for their dishes, using fresh ingredients in creative ways. And it shows in how popular Italian food is all around the world.
One type of food that unites most cultures is soup. Throw a bunch of ingredients into a pot of stock or water and soon you’ve got a hearty meal that’s both warming and filled with nutrients. Particularly as the weather cools off, folks begin to use soups and stews to warm up. But, according to an old Italian proverb, soup actually does a lot more than just warm you up. The proverb goes “La Zuppa fa sette cose” which translates to “soup does 7 things”.
Here are the 7 things that soup does for us:
- Soup quenches your thirst.
- Soup satisfies your hunger.
- Soup fills you up.
- Soup aids in your digestion.
- Soup makes your teeth sparkle.
- Soup puts color in your cheeks.
- Soup helps you to sleep.
There’s no question that soup is filling, hydrating, and satisfies your hunger. But, we hadn’t heard that it has properties that make your teeth look better. As for making you sleep better it seems likely that having a full belly in general does that, whether the meal was soup or not.
Putting color in your cheeks? We can believe it! Whether the originator of the proverb meant that the heat from the broth makes your cheeks rosy or that the vitamins of a well-prepared soup make you feel healthy: it works for either scenario. It’s easy to get your daily 3-5 fruits and veggies if you’re loading your soup up with healthy ingredients. So the next time you enjoy some hot soup remember that it does more than just taste good and fill you up. It does 7 things!
Here Are Some of Our Favorite Soup Recipes
Irish Potato and Leek Soup
One-Pot Zuppa Toscana
Sick Day Chicken Soup
Nana’s Cream of Tomato Soup
Cheeseburger Macaroni Soup
V8 Beef and Vegetable Soup
7-Can Chicken Tortilla Soup
Cabbage Roll Soup
Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup
