Garlic and Onion Soup

Let’s talk about the weather for a little bit. Not too long, though, it hasn’t been great enough to deserve a lot of praise. I’m talking about all the rain we’ve gotten in my area. It seems like every other day it’s raining, pouring and thunder-storming. Doesn’t exactly make for the greatest grilling out weather, does it? Hopefully we’ll get a lot more nice and sunny days that are perfect for firing up the grill, but until then, with all this rainy weather, I’ve been craving soup! Yeah, I know, not what everyone thinks about eating in the summertime, but I find it comforting on dreary days like these.

 

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
5 tablespoons minced garlic
1 medium-large onion, sliced thinly
1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 (1-ounce) slices rustic bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
8 large eggs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Preheat broiler.
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion to pan; cook 5 minutes or until tender (do not brown). Stir in paprika. Add broth, 1 cup water, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet; broil 4 minutes or until golden, stirring once. Reduce temperature to 350°.
Place about 1/4 cup bread cubes in each of 8 ovenproof soup bowls. Break one egg into each bowl; ladle about 1/2 cup broth mixture into each bowl. Arrange bowls on a baking sheet; bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until egg whites are set but yolks are still runny. Garnish with parsley.

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving (serves 8)

Calories: 114
Calories from fat: 41%
Fat: 5.2g
Saturated fat: 1.3g
Monounsaturated fat: 2.7g
Polyunsaturated fat: 0.9g
Protein: 7.3g
Carbohydrate: 7.6g
Fiber: 0.3g
Cholesterol: 180mg
Iron: 1.3mg
Sodium: 398mg
Calcium: 38mg

Chicken Taco Soup

This is definitely one of my favorite fall/winter foods to make. It comes together pretty quickly and is also great to throw together in the crockpot and let go. Sometimes I’ll thrown in a can of black beans (drained), too, if I have them handy and I also like to add a “dollop of Daisy” (sour cream 😉 or greek yogurt).

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 quart reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 1/4 pounds plum tomatoes, diced
1 4.5-ounce can green chilies
2 cups frozen corn
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded, cooked chicken
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced (optional)
Lime wedges for serving (optional)

Directions
1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the chili powder, oregano, and cumin; cook 1 minute more.
2. Stir in the broth, tomatoes, chilies and salt. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the chicken; simmer 10 minutes more. Stir in the cilantro.
3. Ladle into individual bowls and serve garnished with the avocado slices and the lime wedges.

Serves 6

Nutrition facts per serving: 233 calories, 20g protein, 21g carbohydrate, 8g fat (1.4g saturated), 5g fiber

Originally published in FITNESS magazine, January 2010.