Soup Anyone?

Generally, I like soup. Husband doesn't care for it if there is anything else. That doesn't keep me from indulging on these chilly, wintry days. But I do try to choose a healthful soup. Lately I have had this extreme craving for tomato-based foods, expecially soups. The other day I had this bright idea to cruise the soup aisle at the supermarket. Almost as being lead to do so, I saw this display of Progresso Soup, and there to my wondering eyes was...ta-da....Vegetable Classics Hearty Tomato. The calorie count is not bad at 110 per one cup, but there is more sugar and more sodium than I would prefer. Actually, it is quite tasty and probably wouldn't hurt much for an occasional indulgence, but I did get ideas about flavoring my own. BTW, Progresso does have low sodium products which are great.

Along these same lines, I scan Heloise's Hints in our daily newspaper where she often has great recipes. On this particular day, someone had mentioned her recipe for cream soup. She calls it her No-Fat Cream Soup. Think of the possibilities here. You will need: 1 cup nonfat dried milk powder; 1 tablespoon dried onion flakes; 2 tablespoons cornstarch; 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon powder; 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed; 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed; 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Mix all the ingredients and store in an airtight container. This mixture will make about four to six 4-oz servings when water is added. To make soup, add 2 cups of water to the mix in a large saucepan and stir constantly over medium heat until thick. Add 1/2 cup of a main ingredient of your choice and cook until done, adding water if necessary. You can add ingredients to suit your taste. Heloise says that you can use instant potatoes or powdered milk to thicken up most soups. The contributor to this article said that she had used a jar of pureed butternut squash. This soup is on my to-do list.

Heloise's interesting link is http://www.heloise.com/ for recipes and other hints. The above-mentioned clipping goes on my fridge for sure.