I was browsing around the aisles at Trader Joe’s and picked up a carton of their ‘Squash and Roasted Pepper Soup’. Simply delicious, but at almost $4.00 / carton and only four servings, that’s not very cost-effective for me and my family of four. I can easily consume 4 servings in one meal. So I decided to recreate and revamp the recipe by adding additional nutrition perks. I added apples and beans and it tasted super delicious. Apples gave it the subtle sweetness I wanted and the beans just made the fiber skyrocket through the roof. Team this soup with some homemade rolls and they make Dinner a “I don’t want to leave the table meal “.
Some Nutrition Nuts and Bolts about the key ingredients :
Squash : Great source of Vitamins A, E and potassium. High content of Vitamin A makes it a superior cancer protection vegetable. Richer the color, the higher the concentration of Vitamin A.
Sweet Peppers : Loaded with high (really high) amounts of Vitamin C. Also has Vitamin A, B1, B6 and Folic. Vitamin C and Beta Carotene (vitamin A) gives protection against cataracts and eye disorders. It has high amounts of capsaicin which have been touted with fat burning qualities due to increase in metabolism.
Beans : Low fat protein loaded with potassium, protective antioxidants and phytochemicals. Bursting at the seams with all the goodness of fiber. Pinto beans in particular have this amazing quality of just sliding seamlessly into most dishes without altering the taste. Bonus: they increase fiber in the dish. I like beans so much, will probably do a solo post on them sometime.
Apples : A natural mouth freshener with Vitamins C and A. Has large amounts of soluble fiber in the form of pectin which prevents cholesterol build up and keeps the arteries clean … hence the old adage “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”
Ingredients Instructions
http://www.suesnutritionbuzz.com/2011/11/04/squash-and-pepper-a-high-fiber-match-made-in-heaven/
Bonus : Whopping 7 gms of fiber is great and 5 gms of protein for a vegan soup is super !!
Note that this soup provides almost all of your day’s requirements for Vitamin A and half of your Vitamin C requirements.
Low in fat and lower in sodium than most soups.
Try these scrumptious dinner rolls as a perfect accompaniment to the soup.
Hi there! I’m Sunithi, AKA Sue, a registered dietitian with a sweet tooth and a passion for eating healthy (quite a combo) currently working as an independent consultant in the DC Metro area. I’m also a blogger, health nut, nutrition geek who jogs to keep sane :)! I love to revamp recipes and add some ‘Nutrition Bytes’ to them. All my recipes are gluten free! I also blog on natural health and fitness! Visit often and drop me a note if you have any nutrition queries!
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