Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Imagine a great baked potato with all the toppings, but in a creamy soup. This recipe is a simple and yet so good. It is also from the Cooking Light Cookbook, so you don't have to feel bad about eating it!

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Loaded Baked Potato Soup

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4 large baking potatoes (about 2 1/2 lbs.)

2/3 cup all purpose flour

6 cups 2% milk

1 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese, divided

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 cup reduced fat sour cream

3/4 cup green onions

6 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

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Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Clean potatoes, pierce with a fork. Bake for 1 hour or until tender. Cool. Peel potatoes; coursely mash. Discard the skins.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; leve with a knife. Place flour in a large soup pan, gradually add milk; stirring with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (about 8 min). Add mashed potatoes, 3/4 cup cheese, salt and pepper, stirring until cheese melts. Remove from heat.

Stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup green onions. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated (do not boil). Garnish with sprinkles of cheese, green onion and bacon. Serves 8 (1 1/2 cup) servings. Fat 10.8 g; calories 329.

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*I find that it is a little easier to make the soup thicker if a typical roux is made using a little bit of butter and the flour (about 1/4 cup of butter). I always add more salt and pepper and cheese, but I wanted to do it the way it was published first so that the people who have kept their New Year's Resolution to eat healthier will know "the numbers." Another way to keep the numbers down is to use Turkey Bacon instead of pork bacon. I hope you enjoy this on a cold day!

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Recipe credits: The Best of Cooking Light Cookbook, Baked Potato Soup, pg. 329

Butternut Soup

Nothin' beats warm soup and homemade bread on a cold, blustery day. We're talking comfort food, baby!  I'm finding out that soup is pretty souper super -- it's healthy, low-point eating, and better yet -- great for a tight budget. So, we're trying to incorporate soups into our menu planning a little more these days.

Here's a little autumn soup we tried not too long ago. Loved the flavor of the roasted butternut! Perfect for the season. Give it a try and tell me what you think...

 
Butternut Soup

2 points per serving

1 medium butternut squash (about 3 lbs.), peeled, seeded and cut into 1 inch cubes

2 Tablespoons olive oil, divided

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 large onion, chopped

3 celery ribs, chopped

2 Tablespoons minced fresh sage, or 2 teaspoons rubbed sage

3 cans (14.5 oz. each) reduced-sodium chicken broth

cooking spray

 

Place squash in a 15 x 10 x 1 inch baking pan lightly coated with cooking spray. Drizzle  with 1 Tablespoon oil; sprinkle with pepper. Toss around to coat. Bake uncovered, at 425° F for 30-35 minutes or until tender, stirring it every 15 minutes.

In a Dutch oven pan, saute the onion, the celery and the sage in the remaining oil until tender. Stir in broth and reserved squash. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until heated through. Cool slightly.

In a blender, puree the soup in batches until smooth. Return to the pan; heat through if needed. Serves 8.

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This recipe comes with Parmesan croutons to go with it. We chose not to make the croutons when we served it, but here's the recipe in case you do! Adding the croutons makes the soup a 3 point dish.

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Parmesan Croutons
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2 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 Tablespoon minced fresh sage or 1 teaspoon rubbed sage

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups French bread (1/2 inch cubes)

additional grated Parmesan cheese, optional

cooking spray

In a small bowl, combine the cheese, oil, sage and garlic. Add bread cubes and spritz with cooking spray; toss to coat. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425° F for 5-8 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Serve with soup and sprinkle additional Parmesan cheese if desired.

recipe credit: Healthy Cooking magazine, October/November 2009, p.40

Shauna's Hamburger Vegetable Soup

1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 quart bottled tomatoes, undrained or canned tomatoes if fresh bottled ones are not available
6 cups water
6 beef bouillon cubes
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 cup regular barley
1 lb. package frozen mixed vegetables (may be subsituted with any desired fresh vegetables)
1 1/2 cup chopped celery
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Cook beef, onion and garlic in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until beef is browned; drain fat. Add tomatoes, water, bouillon, pepper, and basil to meat mixture. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes. Add barley and vegetables. Simmer 15 more minutes. Recipe from Shauna W.

Bratten's Clam Chowder

Bratten's Clam Chowder

3 stalks celery, sliced (chop up the leaves too)

1 medium onion, diced

1/2 lb. mini carrots, sliced

3 medium russet potatoes, diced

4 (6oz) cans minced and chopped clams, with juice

3/4 cup salted butter

3/4 cup flour

1 quart Half and Half

Tabasco, to taste

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Combine vegetables (use the celery leaves too, they add great flavor) in a stock pot. Add juice drained from the clams (reserve clams for the end) and enough water to barely cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then cover and turn off the burner and let it sit for 5 minutes. While you are waiting for the vegetables to come up to the boil (before you turn off the burner) combine butter and flour in a separate pan. Whisk until smooth. Add half and half and stir until thick. Add this mixture to the cooked vegetables. (after they have boiled for 5 minutes and sat for 5 minutes) Stir until desired consistancy. Remove from heat then add clams, tabasco and salt and pepper.

Recipe Labels II

Look at those kids! That's okay.

Chocolate cake has that effect on me, too. LOL

(Just adding the rest of the labels to our blog.)