Soup to Warm Up Winter
We still have a few months of cold weather — ideal for a bowl of soup
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Is soup your go-to winter meal? It’s easy to see why.
“I love soup,” said Julie Mellen, registered dietitian and clinical dietitian specialist with Upstate Health Care Center. “Soup is such a comforting, versatile, filling and nutritious one-pot meal. It can be put together quickly on the stove or in a crockpot.”
She added that soup is basically any combination of:
• Protein — chicken, beef, pork, fish, beans and lentils
• Fresh, frozen or canned vegetables — carrots, celery, onion, tomatoes, spinach, kale, broccoli, squash, herbs, etc. and even jarred salsa
• Water or broth — vegetable, chicken, beef, canned tomatoes or bone broth for extra protein
• Whole grain — brown rice, barley, pasta or potato
Combine these “and you have a delicious, well-balanced, nutritious, one-pot meal full of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, protein and fiber,” Mellen said. “Soup freezes well so if you make a big pot and have leftovers, it is an easy way to meal prep.”
Portion soup to freeze in serving sizes or enough to feed your family for easy defrosting.
“Soup helps fill you up which can help with weight management,” Mellen added. “You can use an emersion blender to puree some of the vegetables into the soup and ‘hide’ them if you have a picky eater at home.
“For the healthiest soups, stick with broth-based soups and limit soups made with heavy cream. As an alternative to heavy cream to make a soup creamy you can stir in plain Greek yogurt or even lower fat sour cream.”
Her best tip for reducing sodium is selecting a low-sodium broth or making broth by cooking a whole chicken or turkey with water, herbs and vegetables.
One of Mellen’s favorite recipes is from Real Simple Magazine:
Southwestern Chicken Soup
Ingredients
• 1 12-ounce jar salsa verde
• 3 cups cooked chicken pieces (1 small deli-counter rotisserie chicken or leftovers)
• 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1/2 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
• tortilla chips (optional)
• Feel free to add in a big handful of spinach; Can also top with some avocado.
Directions
1. Empty the salsa into a large saucepan. Cook for two minutes over medium-high heat, then add the chicken, beans, broth, and cumin (if desired). Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Top each bowl with a sprinkling of onions, a dollop of sour cream, and some tortilla chips (if desired). For a soupier dish, use four cups of broth.
“Soups can be nutrient-dense and packed with various vitamins, minerals and antioxidants,” said Laurel Sterling, registered dietitian with Carlson Labs in Canastota. “They are a great way to get a healthy, filling and nutritious meal.”
These are two of her favorite recipes:
Easy Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1 onion diced
• 1 butternut squash peeled and diced into cubes
• 32 oz. vegetable broth
• 1-2 teaspoons salt
Directions
1. In a Dutch oven pot (or heavy pot), heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook until softened, about five minutes.
2. Add cut-up butternut squash and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil then cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until squash is softened.
3. Carefully pour entire contents of pot into blender (I use my Vitamix). Add salt.
4. Carefully blend until smooth. Serve in bowls with thyme if desired.
15-Minute Lentil Soup
By Martha Stewart
Ingredients
• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 14 and a half ounces low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 3/4 cup cooked lentils (from one 15-ounce can), rinsed and drained
• 2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
Directions
Cook vegetables: In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic; season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, three to five minutes.
Add broth, bring to a boil and cook for five minutes. Add lentils and cook until soup thickens slightly, three to five minutes. Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper.