Quick and Healthy Ways to Make Soup During the Winter Months

Soup is a go-to food during the winter months because of the warm and comforting feeling it provides. One of the great things about soup is that it is a quick and easy meal you can make yourself. Soup can also be full of healthy ingredients such as vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and lean proteins. There are great ways to make soup more nutrient rich, while still keeping it simple.

Choose the right broth

Having a good stock or broth is the starting point when making soup. Always look for any meat or vegetable stock that is low sodium. High sodium content is typically a major culprit of pre-packaged soups. An even better alternative to buying stock or broth is to simply make your own! All you will need is a pot, water and whatever vegetables, chicken or meat you want to add in. Cook everything in the pot for about an hour, strain the ingredients out and you have instant home-made broth! This is great because not only do you know exactly what ingredients it contains, but it is easy to make in bulk and freeze for multiple soup recipes. Here are some examples of vegetables that are perfect for making broth:

Carrots
Celery
Turnips
Onion
Parsnip
Parsley
Thyme
Black peppercorns

Quick Tip: When using canned soup, reduce the sodium content by diluting it in 2 cups of water. This will increase the quantity while decreasing the sodium per serving! Keep reading for our suggestion on using spices instead of salt to keep the flavor!

Veggies for Volume

Incorporating a variety of vegetables and legumes into any soup is a great way to sneak in extra vitamins and nutrients. It is quite easy to toss in some spinach, arugula, bok choy, or even pureed zucchini or yellow squash to add extra nutrients and texture. Legumes such as beans, lentils, and peas are excellent sources of fiber, are rich in protein, low in fat and are tasty additions to any soup or stew.

Whole Grain Goodness

Use whole grain noodles when making noodle soups. You can also top your soup with a scoop of cooked brown rice, quinoa, millet or buckwheat. Adding whole grains to your soup will make it more of a substantial meal. It also adds fiber, B vitamins, and is an easy way to sneak in one of your three whole grain servings you should be getting per day!

Tempting Toppers

Many soups are topped with tortilla strips, oyster crackers, shredded cheese, or a dollop of sour cream, which add calories and fat. To get that extra crunch, slice up some toasted whole wheat bread or crush up some whole grain crackers into your soup. Garnishing your soup with fresh basil or cilantro also gives a decadent appearance while adding flavor. If you like your sour cream, try substituting it with a scoop of plain, non-fat Greek yogurt with a creamy texture and added protein.

A Taste of Cream that Won’t Make your Waistline Scream

Many people want to enjoy a nice bowl of creamy soup, but know that “creamy” usually means high in fat and calories. However there are some delicious and healthy alternatives that won’t make you feel so guilty about indulging in a bowl of creamy soup. Here are some tips:

Adding vegetable puree such as pumpkin or butternut squash gives a thick and creamy texture while also providing nutrition and flavor. Adding pureed avocado into your soup is also a great way to add thickness, vibrant color and most importantly, healthy fat!
If a recipe calls for heavy cream or whole milk, swap that out for low fat milk thickened with flour. Other alternatives to heavy cream include evaporated milk, fat free sour cream or fat free plain Greek yogurt. You can also substitute half of the cream in a recipe for tofu. This will lower the fat and add protein to your soup.
Never be afraid to spice it up! Use plenty of fresh herbs and spices. Adding pepper, basil, paprika, cilantro, etc. will compensate for the flavor lost from cutting out fatty ingredients and extra salt.
Puree potatoes or sweet potatoes into soup to add creaminess while ditching the saturated fat and gaining vitamins and nutrients.

There are endless ways to turn seemingly boring soups into delicious and healthy meals. Making substitutions and incorporating vegetables, whole grains and legumes is all there is to it. Feel free to get creative and you will be enjoying warm, comforting soup all winter long!

How will you give your favorite soup recipe a healthy makeover?