Winter Casserole Soup

Imagine a soup that provides a whole meal in one bowl and takes only 30 minutes to make. That's the beauty of Winter Casserole Soup, a thick and hearty soup made with vegetables, pasta and red kidney beans. Soup is a great way to brighten up a winter evening. I find that my family, no matter what the weather, loves a bowl of soup. It warms them up and gets them chatting arounnd the table. You can make this a vegetarian meal by using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. Horseradish and vinegar add a little kick and help the flavors of the vegetables blend. The cheddar cheese adds flavor and texture. This tastes great the second day. You can double the recipe and have another quick meal waiting for you. If you make it in advance or are rewarming on the second night, it may become too thick. Just add more broth. This is the type of meal that you can improvise if you haven't been to the supermarket. I keep chicken broth, canned tomatoes and canned beans on hand for quick dinners. Also, I normally have onions, celery and carrots in the refrigerator. If you don't have spinach or cabbage, leave them out or use frozen spinach plus lettuce and any fresh greens you have in the refrigerator. Use any type of short, cut pasta such as elbow macaroni or penne. Or, use up different types of pasta you have. If they're long, break them into smaller pieces. This meal contains 542 calories per serving with 14 percent of calories from fat.

Courses: Soup
Serves: 2 people

Recipe Ingredients

3 cups	711ml	Fat-free low-salt chicken broth
2 1/2 cups	592ml	Canned diced tomatoes, including juice
1/2 cup	31g / 1.1oz	Yellow onion - sliced (1 cup) (medium)
1 cup	110g / 3.9oz	Carrot - sliced (1/2 cup) (medium)
2 cups	220g / 7.8oz	Celery stalks - sliced (1 cup) (medium)
1 cup	237ml	Sliced white cabbage
2 oz	56g	Uncooked fusilli pasta - (1 cup)
1 tablespoon	15ml	Prepared horseradish
1 tablespoon	15ml	Balsamic vinegar
2 cups	474ml	Fresh spinach - washed
1 1/2 cups	240g / 8.5oz	Rinsed and drained canned red beans
2 oz	56g	Shredded low-fat Cheddar cheese - (1/2
		Cup)
		Salt - to taste
		Freshly-ground black pepper - to taste
		Sourdough or whole grain bread

Recipe Instructions

Preheat oven to warm bread. Bring chicken broth and tomatoes to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots and celery. Cover, lower heat to medium and cook on a slow boil 10 minutes. Add cabbage and fusilli. Raise heat and boil, uncovered, 10 minutes.

Mix horseradish and vinegar. Add to soup with spinach and beans. Boil 2 minutes. Pasta will be cooked. Spinach will just be wilted. Add cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Place bread in oven to warm.

This recipe yields 2 servings.

Source:
Susan Wolfe on the http://www.eclix.net Food BB

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