Italian Kale Soup…

I saw a recipe on the back of a cracker box for an Italian soup that used sausage, cannellini beans and spinach. I then came across a recipe for cannellini bean and kale soup. There were things about both recipes I did not like.

 The Italian soup had noodles in it and it just didn’t seem to appetizing to me. It did have sausage,but since I used it the night before in red beans and rice, I didn't have any to add. I thought about putting ground beef in this soup, but didn’t think it would taste right. You could add a pound of sausage to this recipe if you wanted.

The soup is colorful, and full of all those good vitamins we all need, like beta-carotene from carrots, that can help guard against colds and the flu. Then there is Kale, which has quickly become the new super since people have discovered all of its wonder benefits.  

So what is so special about Kale?

One cup of kale contains 36 calories, 5 grams of fiber, and 15% of the daily requirement of calcium and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), 40% of magnesium, 180% of vitamin A, 200% of vitamin C, and 1,020% of vitamin K. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus.

Beyond antioxidants, the fiber content of kale binds bile acids and helps lower blood cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease, especially when kale is cooked instead of raw.

As it stands right now you could switch the chicken broth out for vegetable broth and make this a vegetarian soup.

 I put salt and pepper on the ingredient list. I personally don't think it needs any salt, but to each their own. I think a few tablespoons of shredded mozzarella cheese on top when serving would be really good.

Ingredients:

1 med yellow onion, chopped

3 Tablespoons garlic, minced

Olive oil

4 cups chicken broth

6 packed cups raw kale, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

2 parsnips, chopped

2 cans (15 ounce) Cannellini beans, undrained

1 can (28 ounce) whole tomatoes

½ teaspoon ground thyme

½ teaspoon dried rosemary

½ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon garam masala

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In large soup pot, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil, add in kale and stir until the kale wilts

Add broth, carrots, parsnips, and celery. Drain tomato juice into pot; crush tomatoes before adding to pot.

Add cannellini beans and spices.

Simmer for half hour.

Low Fat Cran-Blueberry Muffins…

I love muffins from a coffee shop, but those muffins do not like us. They are usually high in fat and sugar. Just because you are watching your weight does not mean you have to do without, you have just have to make smarter choices. The muffin recipe today uses whole-wheat, orange juice, blueberries, apricots and cranberries. If you wanted to replace the white sugar, my choice would be clear agave syrup. This recipe was written by Annette Snoek, for Weight Watchers and yes, I did tinker with it a bit…

I read once that if you only did your grocery shopping on the outside rows you would have everything you need to sustain life. Fruits, veggies, dairy and meat, interesting concept, but it is true our bodies do not need any of the engineered processed foods. I thought about it and started a self-argument of I need the baking row for the spices… well I don’t since I can buy fresh herbs. So for those who need a challenge, try it out!

This should make 18 muffins.

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups whole-wheat flour

2/3 cup sugar

1½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

½ teaspoon cornstarch

1/3 cup cold margarine, diced

¾ nonfat plain yogurt

1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed

2 eggs

1 ½ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen

24 dried apricot halves, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F

Either spray muffin cups with cooking spray or insert paper liners.

In a medium bowl combine, yogurt, orange juice, and eggs.

In a large bowl combine, flour, sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, cut in margarine until flour mixture looks like crumbs.

Stir the yogurt mix into the large bowl, until just combined. Gently fold the fruit into the mixture.

Spoon batter into muffins cups, filling two-thirds full.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.