Indian Maiden Soup

Some of the most important things I ever learned, I learned in kindergarten.

My mom and I belonged to a mother-daughter club when I was small — a few years that left a mark far bigger than their size. We were part of the Navajo tribe, and what I absorbed in those early years — the traditions, the land, the deep and living heritage of the Indigenous people of the Southwest — has never left me.

Indian Maiden Soup is a tribute to all of it.

At its heart are the Three Sisters — corn, beans, and squash — the sacred agricultural trio of Indigenous peoples across America, planted together because they thrive together. Corn attracts abundance and brings love, lust, and clarity. Pinto beans carry abundance, prosperity, growth, and transformation. Butternut squash deepens love, relationships, and proper nourishment. Together they are more than ingredients. They are a philosophy: that what grows alongside others grows stronger.

Bell pepper brings energy, balance, and circulation. Garlic wards off the evil eye and offers protection — the way a good community always does. Tomato fuels life force, passion, and energy. Sage carries wisdom, knowledge, and understanding — the quiet teacher in every circle. Chili ignites internal fire and heat. Honey brings sweetness to close it all out.

This is a tribute to my mom, to the little girl I was learning something enormous, and to the Indigenous people of the Southwest whose knowledge, traditions, and relationship with this land deserve to be honored, remembered, and carried forward.

Serves 4–6.