Today’s focus is on Soup (Part 2)
How can you not like soup? Soup is good food, great food even. The way I make soup, it’s definitely not a first course, it’s the main event! Soup is budget-friendly and simple to make…no need to use canned stuff. You just need some help to make it!

Here’s a TIP:
You can get more than your day’s allotment of veggies if you eat soup. Soup is the perfect delicious vehicle for eating a low calorie, veggie rich meal! Leftover veggies from last night’s meal can magically transform themselves into soup with a little chicken broth, some milk and a blender..ta da, last night’s broccoli is now cream of broccoli soup!

Here’s a TRICK:
I’m a sucker for thick soup, but don’t like the calories and fat for heavy, cream soups. So I use my blender to my advantage and puree some or all of my soup to thicken it up (even the clear soups benefit from this technique, offering your watery soup a little more body, yum!!) Here’s another trick; use half and half instead of heavy cream for creamy soups. It’s still rich, but way less fat and very creamy.

And your RECIPE:
Double Potato Soup
Serves 6

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 teaspoon thyme
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 (15 oz.) cans chicken broth
1 cup half and half
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil

In a soup pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add onion and cook till translucent. Add sweet potatoes, potatoes and garlic and cook another two minutes. Add the chickem broth, thyme and cayenne pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer covered until the potatoes are tender; about 10 to 15 minutes.

Use a potato masher and squish the lumps in the soup as best you can. This soup is better not processed in a blender as it is heartier this way, however, if you prefer it smoother, go ahead and blend away. Just remember to process it in batches or it’ll get all over the ceiling.

Heat soup to a simmer, salt and pepper to taste and add half and half and warm till hot, but don’t boil or it will break.

Per Serving: 220 Calories; 12g Fat; 6g Protein; 23g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 30mg Cholesterol; 296mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain (Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1/2 Non-Fat Milk; 2 1/2 Fat.

SERVING SUGGESTION: Spinach salad and some whole grain rolls.

Dear Friends,

The weather is cold and crisp here in North Carolina!

So being the foodie that I am, I have this tendency to gauge the seasons by what I’m cooking. The leaves have changed and blown away, we’ve enjoyed our Thanksgiving feasts and it’s just plain cold outside. And as much as I love grilling outside, I’m happy to be inside cooking on the stovetop. I’m ready for cold weather, the luxury of a fireplace ablaze and something thick and rich cooking in my crockpot for supper later. Doesn’t that sound warm and cozy?

For those of us who are reveling in cold winter weather—or wishing you had some, here’s a recipe for one of my very favorite crockpot recipes from the second edition of Saving Dinner (Ballantine). The delicious smell of this dish cooking all day long will entice you and gratify tummy and soul to the lucky recipients of this delightful meal.

Crockpot Tuscan Chicken
Serves 6

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1″ cubes
1 (15 oz.) can cannelini or white kidney beans, drained
1 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce (your favorite, jarred variety)
1 (4 oz.) jar roasted peppers, diced
1 large onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 cup water
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
12 ounces spaghetti noodles
Salt and pepper to taste

In a crockpot, layer onion, garlic, carrot and celery on the bottom. Add the chicken on top, roasted peppers, beans, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste. Add spaghetti sauce and water. Cover and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours or until chicken is tender and cooked.

During the last 15 minutes of cooking, prepare pasta according to package directions, drain and serve chicken on top.

Per Serving: 473 Calories; 6g Fat; 39g Protein; 65g Carbohydrate; 8g Dietary Fiber; 68mg Cholesterol; 408mg Sodium. Exchanges: 3 1/2 Grain (Starch); 4 Lean Meat; 3 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: Serve with a big spinach salad and a little grated Romano cheese over the top of the pasta and chicken if you like.

I’m sure you’ve heard the old adage, “waste not, want not.” We’ve all grown up with that saying. In our parents and grandparents time, the very idea of wasting food was unthinkable. Today, it’s the norm with nearly 40% of food purchased wasted everyday.

When you consider that the most flexible thing in our budgets are groceries, it’s hard to imagine we’re throwing away $40 worth of food for every $100 spent. Imagine the ATM machine spitting out five 20 dollar bills and then taking three of those 20’s and putting them in a paper shredder. That is a great picture of what food waste costs you. Are you willing to shred 40 bucks each time you take $100 out of your bank account?

Take it a step further: that 40% translates to 29 million tons of food being wasted each year. That’s enough food to fill up the Rose Bowl every 3 days. The cost of this waste? $100 billion annually.

Another place of waste is spending your food budget money on eating out all the time. Unless you’re splitting stuff on the dollar menu regularly, there’s no way you can stay within budget eating out all the time–unless you have a ridiculously large food budget, but then, wouldn’t you rather put some of that cash toward something else besides food?

Waste is abhorrent whether it’s the government wasting taxpayer money or the personal waste happening inside your refrigerator week after week. Money is money and in this economy, it’s hard to come by. Wasting like this is as bad as spending frivolously—it shows a serious lack of respect for the value of a buck.

The antidote to curb these kinds of waste all points back to planning—if you don’t make a menu for the week, you are missing out on being able to take advantage of your grocery stores sales, you miss the peace of mind that comes with having a plan and you miss out on saving quite a few bucks.

This week, make a menu. As another old adage goes, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

Today’s focus is on BLACK BEANS

High in magnesium, iron, potassium and folate, black beans are also off the hook sources of protein and fiber. Eating black beans will help lower your overall cholesterol, especially the LDL levels (the bad cholesterol). And this bean is known for its antioxidant prowess as well as its ability to moderate insulin resistence. Who knew?

Here’s a TIP:
If you’re buying canned black beans and are concerned about sodium, check out the organic canned bean brands. Generally, they have much less sodium in them then conventional brands.

Here’s today’s TRICK:
Cold soak your beans overnight rather than do the quick soak method. This draws off less of the folate and other water-soluble nutrients. After you’ve soaked your beans, you can freeze them and then you’ll have presoaked beans always on hand!

And your RECIPE:
Mexican Casserole
Serves 6

8 ounces penne or mostaccioli, uncooked
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
1 (27 1/2 oz.) jar spaghetti sauce, your favorite
1 (14 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup water
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chilies, drained
1/2 (.75 oz.) package reduced sodium taco seasoning mix (if available or use regular
1/2 cup low fat Monterey Jack cheese (2 oz.)

Cook pasta according to package directions and drain.

In a skillet, brown your beef and drain well, blotting with paper towels to pick up the extra grease. Meanwhile, in large saucepan over medium heat, heat oil; add onion and red pepper.

Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until tender. Add cooked beef to onion/pepper mixture, mixing well.

Add remaining ingredients except cheese; heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes.

Toss hot pasta and one-half sauce. Spoon remaining sauce over top; sprinkle with cheese.

Per Serving: 326 Calories; 14g Fat; 14g Protein; 58g Carbohydrate; 8g Dietary Fiber; 3mg Cholesterol; 994mg Sodium. Exchanges: 3 1/2 Grain (Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat.

I grew up in the 70’s where wide bell bottoms, Richard Nixon and Charlie’s Angels reigned supreme. And even though Helen Reddy was singing, “I am Woman, Hear Me Roar”, most homemakers of that time weren’t exactly burning their bras…they were figuring out the art of juggling a home and a career and were more interested in not burning dinner!

You could say I was one of the original latchkey kids from that era. My mom worked fulltime most of my childhood, except when we were really young. She was organized and disciplined. In her words, she ran a “tight ship”. Dinner was never a question mark. My dad, brother, sister and I were never left to our own devices to figure out what to root around in the kitchen for dinner; there was a plan and we stuck to it. As I got older, I was expected to start dinner before my mom got home.

My sister and I took dance lessons, piano and my brother played baseball. Later on, I had cheerleading practice to add to the busyness. But the question of what was for dinner never went unanswered. The answer was posted on the refrigerator in the form of menu. Why? My mother planned our meals.

Hectic and busy is here to stay in today’s economy. The standard is a two working outside of the home parents. The norm is lessons, sports and crazy schedules for everyone. Having dinner be the dreaded question each day doesn’t make a lick of sense. The answer of course, is a plan; a menu like my mother posted on our refrigerator week after week.

I need to go back to Memory Lane here for just a minute. Even though my mother worked fulltime, I still learned to cook. My mother didn’t think she got a pass at not teaching me because she held a fulltime job outside of the home. To her, cooking was as integral as brushing your teeth; it is something you do to care for yourself and eventually, others in your home. Cooking was mandatory.

That is my message today. Cooking is essential to healthy living. Planning is critical for making it happen. And yes, it’s mandatory. There is no reason not to cook; it’s just a matter of making friends with a plan, getting to know your major appliances and jumping in.

Don’t be intimidated! Besides the necessity factor, cooking can be fun (scout’s honor!). This is why I do what I do; to help turn a chore into a joy and make your cooking an adventure! Yes, it can happen! Come join me and see what I mean…you know where to find me!