Be Mindful About the Foods You Choose...

As the weather gets colder, a bowl of soup begins to sound like a good option for a meal. Starting a meal with soup is also a good way to watch what you eat. In the season of sharing meals to celebrate with co-workers, friends and family, why not add a soup to your menu or order soup to start your meal. A satisfying meal will help curb the desire for Holiday sweets.

There are many locations on the web you can go for soup recipes. Foodnetwork.com and Dinnertool.com are two good sites to visit to get ideas. Personally, I am a Food Network Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee type of a cook. One soup that I like to make that breaks my semi-homemade trend is Carrot Soup. I've adapted the recipe over the years so it now is an amalgam based on what I read, watched on TV and experimented with in the kitchen. Here's my healthy twist to the recipe...a heartwarming and satisfying meal on its own with a wedge of bread.

Healthy Twist on Carrot Soup:

Melt a Quarter Cup of UNSALTED butter in pot
Thinly slice 2 small onions (NOT RED) ... or one large and add to the pot with melted butter. Saute till translucent.
Thinly slice (for faster cooking) 2 LBS of carrots and add to the onions. TIP: An option is to use bite sized carrots to save cutting time...unfortunately then it is not as cost effective.
Add 1 TSP of dried TARRAGON
Cover and simmer about 10 minutes until carrots are tender.

After you test carrots and find they are tender, add 4 cups of LOW SODIUM Chicken Broth/Chicken Stock. Add one third a cup of orange juice...about the juice of an average orange if you do not want to buy orange juice for one recipe. Add 2 TBSP of lemon juice...or 1 TBSP lemon juice concentrate and 1 TBSP of water. Boil for 10-15 minutes...time depends upon how thinly cut the carrots are.

Blend the mixture in a food processor. (Remember to cover the top of the blender...the steam can cause the top to fly off and make the kitchen a mess!) Taste the final product...add salt and pepper as desired. Serve warm with a wedge of bread (hearty whole grain is a healthy option), grilled cheese or a cheese, cracker and fruit plate.