This is souper!

Hi! I'm Jen's dinner swap partner, Melanie, and every now and then if she really likes something I make, I try to remember to stick the recipe up here. I don't know if it's because we're beachside that our weather is suffering from multiple personality disroder right now, or if that's just Spring any where, but one day you wake up and it's a beach day and the very next is a definite soup day. If you love soup weather, this is a really good recipe. Total crowd pleaser. If you beef it up with some whole grain Goldfish crackers sprinkled on top, it makes a great lunch all by itself.

Bell Pepper-Tomato Soup

2 tsp olive oil
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1 medium onion(s), diced
1 medium carrot(s), chopped
1 1/2 tsp herbes de Provence
3 medium sweet red pepper(s), or orange, sliced**
14 1/2 oz reduced-sodium chicken broth
28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
1 tsp table salt
1/2 cup(s) fat-free creamer, or fat-free half-and-half
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp sugar

In a large pot, heat oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic, stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add onion and carrot. Cook until onion is tender, about 5 minutes.

Add herbes de Provence, cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add peppers. Cook until begins to soften, about 5 minutes. (See footnote: You do not need to cook peppers if they are charred and peeled.)

Add broth and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Cover; simmer for 25 minutes. Stir in salt, pepper, half-and-half and sugar. Purée in small batches; briefly reheat, if needed. Yields 1 cup per serving.

**The bell peppers are awesome if you roast them. Just halve them, remove the seeds, and place them face down on a foil covered cookie sheet under your broiler for fifteen minutes until charred. Remove them from the heat and seal them in a Ziploc bag for fifteen minutes, then remove the charred parts (comes off easily in your hands). It really adds a lot to the flavor.

This makes 8 servings at only 1 point per serving!

You can check out my blog where I dump out all my random thoughts for a low calorie sweet and salty snack I love here.

Southwestern Corn Chowder

If you are in a hurry, and need a quick but absolutely delicious meal, you have come to the right place. This corn chowder recipe is from a friend of mine and I made a couple of simple changes to lighten it up. Everyone who has tried it has loved it!


8 Servings : 4 pts / 5 Pts + / Ea. serving is about 1 1/2 C.
1 lg. onion
2 t. cumin
2 T light butter
2 T flour
2 T chili powder
2 cans corn, drained
1 lg can chicken breast
2 (16 oz.) jars salsa
2 cans fat free chicken broth
8 oz. 1/3 less fat cream cheese
8 oz. fat free cream cheese
chopped cilantro

In a large saucepan, combine light butter, onion, cumin, chili powder and flour. Saute onions until transparent. Add corn, chicken breast, salsa and broth. Bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and add cream cheese. Stir until melted and dissolved. Add cilantro for garnish.

Creamy Blended Mushroom Soup

So I used the Cream of Zucchini soup as my inspiration, and made a mushroom version. With mushrooms, most people either love them or hate them. I love them. There is a little French restaurant that I have gone to occasionally that makes the best mushroom soup. My version (to me at least) tastes just as great! (With a lot less fat I am sure. The only thing mine doesn't have is the crusty french bread to go along with it!)

I made this on Monday, and ate a bowl with lunch several times this week. It was great.

So if you are a mushroom fan, keep reading. If not, this post is not for you.

2 pts/Cup

2 T butter
2 C chopped onion
1/2 C brown rice
8 C chicken broth
1 1/2 lbs mushrooms (I used 2 portabello and the rest-white button)
1/2 C light sour cream

In a large pot on medium heat, melt butter. Add the onions and rice and saute till onions are golden and soft. Add 4 C broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat to med low, and stir frequently until rice is soft, about 30 min. Meanwhile, finely chop the mushrooms, (I used a food processor). When rice is cooked, add 2 more C of broth, and the mushrooms. Raise the heat back up to medium. Cook until mushrooms are soft. Using an immersion blender, blend until desired consistancy, adding the additional 2 C broth once it is blended. (Or you could take out of the pot and use a blender) Heat till hot, and turn off the stove. At the end, add the sour cream and stir till incorporated.

By the way, I did not take a picture. It is just brown soup.

Soup and Sandwich Dinner

I thought I would have a soup and sandwich dinner tonight. I made my favorite french dip sandwiches and they turned out great. For once I didn't overcook the meat. I added a photo to the post if you want the recipe.

The soup I made was Cream of Zucchini, and it was amazing- 2 pts. per cup. I got the recipe off of A Veggie Venture and if you click on the link, you can get the recipe. Every recipe I have gotten off of that blog has been amazing. So if you are looking for more ways to eat more veggies, look no further!

The soup was restaurant quality, in my opinion. She offers variations in preparation, so this is what I used: I used chicken broth for the liquid, stuck with the brown jasmine rice that she uses, and followed the recipe pretty much exactly. The only thing I did differently was use a hand-held blender and blended the soup right in the pot instead of transferring to a blender. I think it saved me a little time. I used light sour cream and tasted wonderful.

I also began thinking of other veggies I could use to make it, mushroom, or cauliflower would be great variations....

Check it out!

Taco Chili

This recipe is a mixture of chili and taco soup. It makes a huge pot, and the servings are huge for low points. Great fall recipe.

8 Servings /2 Cups Each /4 Pts. /6 P+ Ea. Serving

1 pd lean ground meat (for my points, I used 96% lean ground beef)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 C celery, cut into chunks
2 zucchini or summer squash, shredded
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 sm. can green chilis
2 15 oz cans stewed tomatoes
2 cans black beans (can substitute another type of bean if you want)
1 Taco Seasoning packet
1 Ranch-style dressing mix packet (Hidden Valley)
2 t. cumin
16 oz. frozen corn
2 t. chili powder


In a large soup pot, brown the meat, then add onions, garlic, zucchini, peppers, and celery halfway through the browning.
One by one add the remaining ingredients. Do not drain anything, just dump.Heat through, and simmer for a while till the flavors blend (about 1/2 hour).

This makes a lot. Leftovers can be frozen if you like.

Awesome Beef Stew

I wanted to make something in my crockpot this week, so I looked through one of my recipe books, Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly. I found a recipe called Best Everyday Stew by Elizabeth L. Richards and it turned out amazing! The only thing I did differently was add mushrooms. Using flank steak was a brilliant idea because it is leaner than stew meat, and it falls apart to have a sort of pot roast feel in this recipe. Tons of meat in each serving. I also added a bit more garlic.
My husband loved it!

8 Servings/5 Pts. ea.
Serving Size: 1 1/3 C


2 1/4 lbs. flank steak
8 small red potatoes, chopped into 1" pieces
10 baby carrots
sliced fresh mushrooms
1 large clove garlic, chopped or more if you like
1 med-lg onion, chopped
1 C peas
3 ribs celery, cut into 1" pieces
3 C cabbage, chopped
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce
1-2 T Worcestershire Sauce
2 bay leaves
1/2 t dried thyme
1/2 t dried basil
1.2 t dried marjoram
1 T dried parsely
2 C water
4 cubes or t. beef buillon
2-3 T Cornstarch or Flour mixed into 1/4 C water

Trim flank steak of fat. Cut into 1 1/2 chunks. Brown slowly in large skillet. Chop potatoes and other veggies. Combine all ingredients in large slow-cooker. Cover. Cook on high for one hour, then turn to low and cook for 9 more hours. About an hour before it's done, mix cornstarch or flour with water till smooth, and pour into crockpot. Stir and recover.

(Note: I didn't have time for 10 hours cooking, so I cooked it on high for 2 hours, and then turned to low for 6 hours and it came out perfectly.

Roasted Vegetable and Chicken Stew

This is a nice hearty stew that is also husband-approved. I serve it with Pillsbury biscuits from the blue can, they are each one point. If you like rosemary, this one's for you.

Servings Vary, 28 Pts total

4 C unpeeled, cubed red potatoes
2 C whole baby carrots
1 C chopped red onions
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 T olive oil
1 clove garlic - minced
1 1/2 T dried thyme
1 1/2 T dried rosemary
1 t dried tarragon
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 C sliced green beans
1 C sliced mushrooms
1/2 C dry white wine (can substitute 1/2 C broth with either 1 t white wine vinegar, or 1/2 C broth with 1 t lemon juice)
24 oz chicken breast, cubed (about 4 breasts, or 6 breast fillets)
3 C fat-free chicken broth
3 T flour

1. Spray a large roasting pan with non-stick spray. Add potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, onions, vinegar, oil, garlic, 1 t thyme, 1 t rosemary, tarragon, salt and pepper. Mix well. Roast, uncovered, at 425 for 30 mins. Stir once, halfway through the cooking time. Add green beans and roast for 10 more mins.
2. Pour wine or wine substitute into a large saucepan. Add remaining thyme and rosemary. Bring to a boil. Add chicken pieces and reduce heat to med. high. Cook, uncovered, until chicken is cooked through, about 12 mins. Add roasted vegetables to chicken and wine. Stir in 2 1/2 cups of broth.
3. In a small bowl, combine flour with remaining broth and stir until lump free. Add flour mixture to chicken and vegetables. Cook until stew is bubbly and has thickened, about 3 mins. Serve hot.

Recipe by: Crazy Plates by Janet & Greta Podleski