By the time I was finished with work today, I was beat. I didn’t feel like grocery shopping or cooking an elaborate meal. I wanted something easy. I wanted something fast.
So when I got home, I looked in the pantry, fridge, and freezer. Bingo. I spotted tonight’s lucky ingredients. It was going to be a soup night. I call it my “Easy Guilt-Free Springtime Soup.”
What I really liked about this meal was that it took no time at all to prep the ingredients and throw everything in pot. I pretty much let the stove top and microwave do everything for me.
Here’s what went in the mix:
- 1 container of Trader Joe’s Creamy Tomato Soup
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 package of whole wheat pasta (I used fusilli)
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 bag steam-in-the-bag broccoli
- 1 bag steam-in-the-bag sweet corn
- 1 cup of fresh spinach
- 1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved
- Juice of 2 limes
- garlic pepper (to taste)
- garlic powder (to taste)
- 1 dollop of light sour cream
- garlic chives for garnish
- handful of Trader Joe’s Veggie and Flax Seed Chips
Directions:
- Pour container of tomato soup and 2 cups of water in a large pot and bring to a boil.
- Add the onion and whole wheat pasta to the pot and cook according to directions on pasta package.
- While the pasta and onion is cooking, microwave the steam-in-the-bag broccoli and corn.
- Once the pasta is cooked, reduce the heat on the stove top and add the broccoli and corn.
- Add the juice of two limes, garlic pepper, and garlic powder to taste (you could also use fresh minced garlic and pepper).
- Stir all of the ingredients and let simmer for 4-5 minutes.
- To serve, ladle the soup in a pretty bowl and add the fresh spinach. The spinach will wilt slightly from the heat. That’s what you want!
- Add the halved tomatoes to the soup, as well as a dollop of light sour cream and garlic chives. I have a garlic chive plant, but you should also be able to buy pre-cut chives in the store. Scallions would also be delicious.
- I finished off the soup by crumbling a few veggie and flax seed chips on top. You could also use tortilla chips.
I’m usually not a huge fan of soup in the spring or summer, especially when the temps are on the rise, but this soup was perfect. The whole wheat pasta and veggies add a lot of bulk to the soup, so a small bowl was satisfying. Plus, it’s really healthy! All of my veggies for the day in one serving. Can’t beat that! A perfect way to celebrate spring!
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