HEALTHY RECIPE for ’09: ROBUST BEAN SOUP, High in Protein and Fiber, Low in Fat, and Completely Fulfilling

For the last couple months, most of us have been guilty of cheating on our daily diets by ingesting way too many tempting, rich and fattening foods, drinks and treats. Now it’s time to refocus and get back into shape as we attempt to rediscover our routine diets, or perhaps, establish a new diet for ’09. After all, spring break (bathing suit season) is only a few months away.  Yikes!  

Here is a tasty, healthy meal that you can prep in about 10 minutes and redeem your splurging behavior. As for those of you rare souls who maintained your dedication to your diets over the holidays, you can add this easy, healthy recipe to your repertoire.

When preparing this meal, you may wish to substitute your favorite beans for those listed below. (i.e.… garbanzo for great northern or red for pinto…) Surprisingly, each can of beans listed in this recipe contain about 6-8 grams of protein, 5-7 grams of dietary fiber, and only 1 or 0 grams of fat per serving. You really don’t need to add meat to complete this soup. In fact, most of the time, I don’t include any meat unless I have some leftover that I wish to use up.

ROBUST BEAN SOUP

6-8 ounces cooked meat (optional): ground Italian sausage, Mr. Turkey sausage (cut into coins) or chunks of bite-sized ham

1 medium onion, diced

3 cups chicken broth (preferably the brand “Better than Bouillon” as it does not contain MSG)

3 cups water

1 can great northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 can butter beans, drained and rinsed

1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 can (14 ½ oz.) diced tomatoes (not drained)

2 large carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

½ t. dried oregano

½ t. dried basil

Dash of flaked red peppers (optional)

If using Italian sausage, cook and drain fat. If using pre-cooked meat, cut into coin slices and sauté in a touch of olive oil.

In a large pot, combine meat, chicken broth, water, beans, tomatoes (with their juice), carrots, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes. Cover and bring to a boil. Remove the cover and simmer on high for 10 minutes or until carrots are tender. Stir occasionally. Serve immediately.

This soup goes well with salad and warm bread.