Have you been ailing for days and want to sip something other than soup to strengthen your immune system? We tell you which food is really good for you if you have a cold.
Vitamins for the immune system: Eat yourself healthy
J ow it’s official! Men really suffer from a cold more than women. Genes and hormones are to blame, as researchers at Stanford University of California found
In the experiment, the defense reaction after flu vaccinations was measured in women and men. It turned out that men produce fewer antibodies – and are therefore more blown away. So that it doesn’t get that far this year, it is all the more important to counter this with healthy vegetables. Bake, grill or cook green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach or Swiss chard, so the many positive effects can be ideally combined with a warm winter meal. While fresh food is limited in winter, there are plenty of green leafy vegetables. To keep the immune system ready and colds at bay, the body needs sufficient vitamins and minerals.
Another important ingredient makes the greens a real health booster: chlorophyll. With the help of photosynthesis, the plant pigment converts light into carbohydrates and thus provides the necessary energy for the plant. The power substance unfolds even further in people. It neutralizes acids in the body, which means that the tissue is better supplied with blood and the cells receive more oxygen. Viruses and bacteria don’t like that at all.
So: better to bite into the green than into the grass! Here come the best recipes with the green fodder!
Swiss chard pan with egg, onions and tomatoes
Even the ancient Romans valued leafy vegetables. Swiss chard contains a lot of fiber, which improves digestion and helps to bind and eliminate toxins in the body.
- 250 g cherry tomato (s)
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 kg of Swiss chard
- 2 medium onion (s)
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- salt
- pepper
- 4 medium egg (s)
- Halve or quarter the cherry tomatoes, mix with the red wine vinegar in a small bowl and set aside.
- Cut out the chard stalks, place the leaves in a bowl with cold water, wash thoroughly, pour into a colander to drain and then roughly chop. Then wash and dry the stems and cut them into narrow strips. Peel the onions and garlic, dice both finely.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pan with a lid on medium heat. Add the stalks of the chard together with the onion cubes and sauté for about 10 minutes. Reduce the heat, add the garlic and sauté everything for one minute while stirring. Then add the chard leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Turn the hotplate on the highest setting and wait, stirring constantly, until the leaves have collapsed.
- Reduce to medium heat and use the back of a spoon to make 4 hollows in the vegetables. Slide 1 egg in each. Cover the pan and let the eggs set for about 4 minutes.
- Pour vinegar tomatoes on top and serve immediately.
- Calories (kcal): 420
- Fat: 26g
- Protein: 29g
- Carbohydrates: 16g
Nutty kale
Preheat the oven to 150 degrees. Wash the kale, remove the hard stalks, and spread on a baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil, then sprinkle the other ingredients on the leaves. Massage the whole thing well into the leaves, then bake in the oven for 20 minutes on the top shelf until crispy (after 10 minutes slide the tray onto the middle shelf).

- 200 g kale
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tsp sesame (toasted)
- 0.5 tsp sea salt
- Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.
- Wash the kale, remove the hard stalks, and spread on a baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil, then sprinkle the other ingredients on the leaves.
- Massage the whole thing well into the leaves, then bake in the oven for 20 minutes on the top shelf until crispy (after 10 minutes slide the tray onto the middle shelf).
- Calories (kcal): 147
- Fat: 10g
- Protein: 10g
- Carbohydrates: 7g
Baked kale with lemon
4 ingredients, 25 minutes and 100 percent taste: try this delicious clean eating recipe
- 200 g kale
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 0.5 tsp sea salt
- Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.
- Wash the kale, remove the hard stalks, and spread on a baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil, then sprinkle the other ingredients on the leaves.
- Massage the whole thing well into the leaves, then bake in the oven for 20 minutes on the top shelf until crispy (after 10 minutes slide the tray onto the middle shelf).
- Calories (kcal): 152
- Fat: 11g
- Protein: 9g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
Citrus salmon on spinach salad with ginger
Healthy fatty acids from salmon, hardly any carbohydrates and a taste explosion on the tongue: The citrus salmon recipe from “Deutsche See Fischmanufaktur” has a lot to offer

- 320 g salmon (fillets)
- 5 tbsp oil
- 1/2 medium orange (organic)
- 1 medium lime (s) (organic)
- 150 g baby spinach
- 1/2 bunch of radishes
- 1/2 medium-sized bell pepper (yellow)
- 1 medium shallot (s)
- 1 ginger
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- Prepare the salmon, because the longer the essential oils of the citrus peel are allowed to act, the more aromatic it tastes. First, wash the orange and lime and dry them well.
- Now brush the fillets on both sides with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and then rub the peel of the oranges and limes directly onto the fish, as this will retain more of their fresh scent. Then salt and pepper the fish and – while you prepare the salad – let it steep.
- First wash the spinach, radishes and bell peppers. Cut the radishes into slices, finely dice peppers, shallots and garlic. For the salad, pluck the larger spinach leaves a little bit smaller, leave baby spinach whole. Then carefully mix the spinach in a bowl with the radishes, bell peppers and the shallot.
- For the dressing, squeeze the orange and the lime, measure 2 tablespoons of orange and 1 tablespoon of lime juice and mix this with finely chopped ginger and white wine vinegar. Then slowly beat in 2 tablespoons of oil in a thin stream and season the dressing with salt and pepper.
- Now fry the salmon in the remaining olive oil for 3–4 minutes on each side until it is completely through but still tender. Fold the dressing under the salad at the very end and serve the salad and fish together. Serve with crispy baguette or ciabatta.
- Calories (kcal): 768
- Fat: 66g
- Protein: 37g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
Grilled romaine lettuce with oranges, gorgonzola and orange vinaigrette
With a water content of 92 percent, romaine lettuce is very low in calories, but still provides a considerable amount of vitamin C and B vitamins.
- 2 medium orange (s)
- 6 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 0.5 tsp honey
- 1 pinch of sea salt
- 1 pinch of pepper
- 2 heads of romaine lettuce
- 1 pinch of salt
- 125 g Gorgonzola
- For the vinaigrette:
- Squeeze oranges.
- Whisk with olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, sea salt and pepper.
- For the salad:
- Peel the oranges with a sharp knife so that no white skin remains on them. Remove the fillets from the separating skins and set aside. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.
- Remove the stems from the heads of lettuce so that the leaves are still sticking together. Remove dead leaves and cut the heads in half. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush the lettuce halves with the vinaigrette on both sides (save the rest) and season lightly with salt and pepper.
- Place on the tray with the cut surface facing down and slide into the oven. Grill on both sides for 1 to 2 minutes, until brown spots appear and ends start to darken. Take out and arrange on a plate.
- Crumble the Gorgonzola, sprinkle over the salad and top with the orange fillets. Drizzle over the rest of the vinaigrette and season with freshly ground pepper.
- Calories (kcal): 752
- Fat: 58g
- Protein: 24g
- Carbohydrates: 34g
Celery and spinach shake
A heart chases around 7,000 liters of blood through the body every day. The amount doubles for athletes. Drink this shake so that the pressure and thus your training performance never decrease
- 1 medium-sized apple
- 1 medium pear (s)
- 4 stalks of celery
- 100 g spinach
- 3 sprigs of parsley (smooth)
- 3 tbsp oat bran
- 300 ml of water
- Quarter the apple and pear, remove the core and put the fruit in the blender.
- Thirds the celery and add. Then roughly shred the spinach and parsley and add to the rest.
- Scatter oat bran on top, pour in water and mix until there are no more pieces. Finished!
- Calories (kcal): 484
- Fat: 7g
- Protein: 20g
- Carbohydrates: 84g
Pan-stir fried pak choi with shiitake mushrooms
Pak Choi is a real Asian secret weapon that not only tastes delicious, but also scores with low calories (14 kcal per 100 grams) and lots of folic acid, iron, calcium and beta-carotene. We like it!
- 5 tsp soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- 0.5 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
- 2 cm ginger
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 200 g shiitake mushrooms
- 800 g pak choi
- 1 medium-sized bell pepper (red)
- 1 tbsp peanut oil
- 120 g rice, raw
- For the sauce:
- Whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Eliminate.
- For the vegetables:
- Toast the sesame seeds in a pan without fat until golden brown. Peel and finely chop the ginger and garlic. Slice the mushrooms, pak choi and peppers into thin strips.
- Heat the ednut oil in a wok or large pan, fry the garlic and ginger for a minute while stirring. Add the rest of the vegetables and stir-fry for 2 more minutes. Pour the sauce over it and cook for another minute.
- Sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds on the dish and serve immediately.
- Calories (kcal): 459
- Fat: 14g
- Protein: 15g
- Carbohydrates: 75g