Fitness Friday: Soup Season

You may be wondering what my studly husband is up to now that the Ride to Conquer Cancer is over. He’s decided he wants to train for a triathalon. That’s right. And he’s moved on to P90X. There’s no stopping this man. He wants to do the P90X diet and everything. The other day, he actually e-mailed me a list of “acceptable foods” to help me at the grocery store.

Blink. Blink.

Do I look like I need help purchasing acceptable foods at the grocery store? Fine, you want chard and plain yogurt? You got it, baby. In fact, just take over Fitness Friday, why don’t you? I’ll just sit in the corner and eat chocolate.

No, seriously…after I became mildly irritated, I actually thanked God for answered prayer. Jon has finally succumbed to my years of brainwashing. Proving once again to every wife out there, if you nag your husband enough, he’ll eventually give in to your every whim.

No, seriously…if you pray for your husband (or wife) to become good stewards of their bodies and their health, God will answer that prayer. And I really mean that. (I’m proud of you, honey–and you are looking HOT.)

Speaking of answered prayer–and this has nothing whatsoever to do with Fitness Friday, except that it happens to be Friday when this post will appear–

I got an e-mail from one of the publishers reviewing my book proposal! (if you missed the whole discussion on that, I talked it about it once here). Taken By Storm: Hearing God Speak in the Midst of Chaos will go before the editorial committee on October 22nd. They also asked for a few sample chapters from Defining Moment: Deciding to Live After the Death of Your Child. I didn’t actually present that book in the proposal, but mentioned it briefly. They liked the idea enough to want to read some of it.

I haven’t heard from the other publisher or either of the literary agents yet. This could actually get interesting. Can you imagine a bidding war over the rights to my book???? Yeah, me neither.

But it would be really cool if more than one entity offered me a contract. That’s a ways off and not very likely…but you can pray for me. That would be nice.

And just in case said publishers/literary agents peruse my blog today, this would be a really good day to say something kind in the comments. I’m just sayin’.

Anyhoo…back to soup. Yes, this post is about soup. I love fall because I love soup. Fall and soup go hand in hand. It just doesn’t seem right to cook a big ole pot of hot soup when it’s 90 degrees outside. Thus, summer and soup don’t mix. To me, there’s nothing better than a chill in the air, my kitchen window cracked open and the aroma of something yummy simmering on the stove.

Soup is also a great way to get all kinds of healthy veggies in your diet without trying very hard. And if you stay away from heavy creams, they are suprisingly low calorie. Of course, if you need help purchasing acceptable vegetables, I can always have Jon e-mail you a list.

I like to make a pot of soup on Monday or Tuesday and eat it all week long for lunch. Serve it with grilled cheese or a big salad (it’s like a salad, only bigger) for a hearty meal. Here are two of my favorites. Super (souper?) easy and very nutritious:

Cream of Broccoli Soup (no cream required)

4 ½ cups organic chicken broth, divided

1 ½ pounds frozen broccoli florets

1 large stalk celery, chopped

I medium onion chopped

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon garlic powder (or more to taste)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup low-fat evaporated milk

In a 3 quart saucepan combine 2 cups chicken broth, celery and onion. Cover and heat to boiling. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Do not drain.

Working in batches if necessary, transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender. Blend to uniform consistency.

In a separate 3 quart sauce pan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Slowly add in remaining 2 ½ cups chicken broth, stirring constantly. Heat to boiling, stirring for one minute.

Add white sauce to broccoli mixture, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Add evaporated milk and cook until heated through.

Serves 8

1 ¼ cup serving: 88 calories, 5 grams of protein and 3 grams of fat.

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Tomato-Cheese Ravioli Soup

1 (14.5 oz) can stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 (14.5 oz) can vegetable or chicken broth, undiluted

½ teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

½ (25-ounce) package frozen cheese ravioli

1 cup sliced zucchini

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Combine first three ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer five minutes. Add ravioli, zucchini and pepper, bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer seven minutes or until pasta and zucchini are tender.

Serves 4

Serving size 1 ¼ cup, 228 calories, 9 grams protein, 9 grams fat

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You may also want to pop over to Christine’s blog for her minestrone soup recipe!!! YUMMMMO!!

And don’t forget to visit Debbie at Heart Choices. She’s doing a public repentance for falling off the exercise wagon. Don’t we all fall off sometimes? I know I do! Don’t be too hard on yourself, girl! You’re an inspiration to me.

And Sarah at All Pain No Gain wrote a thought-provoking post about real beauty. It’s awesome!

Do you have a favorite soup recipe or something fitness related you want to share? Leave me comment with the recipe or a link to your blog.

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Enjoy your soup! Let me know if you try any of them and how you like them.