Good morning! With the holidays in sight a lot of us are thinking about how to save money and eat healthy and keep stress at bay. One of my go-to comfort/rescue/all-purpose foods this time of year is soup. It’s a great option to cook in batches so you have what you need to get you through a hectic time. Even good stress from happy things can wear on us!

Today I’m featuring some healthy soup tips along with a beautiful recipe from Brynn of The Domestic Dietitian. If you guys haven’t been to her blog, you’ll love her healthy and delicious recipes. I’m so excited to make this lentil stew—I hope you love them too! Take it away, Brynn! 

There is nothing quite as comforting as a warm bowl of hearty soup on chilly fall and winter evenings. Flavorful broths filled with roasted vegetables and fresh herbs or thick and creamy soups that nourish our mind and body are a wonderful part of the season.

Soup can be a great addition to a healthy lifestyle. They are a great way to add more vegetables to your meals and use relatively inexpensive ingredients, making them budget friendly. You can also make a big batch of soup and enjoy the leftovers all week long, meal prep made easy!

Since fall is a relatively hectic time of year for many people, especially as we move into the holiday season, I wanted to share a few soup recipes that are hearty and filling enough to be a complete meal, making meal time easy.

There are a few things to be mindful of when choosing a hearty and healthy soup –

• Cream based soups can add a lot of fat and calories. Thick and creamy soups can be achieved by pureeing vegetables or beans to achieve that same smooth texture.
• Use low sodium stock whenever possible to cut back on sodium in your diet. Using fresh herbs can add great flavor without having to use additional salt for taste.
• Add protein to ensure a well-balanced meal. Some great examples include chicken, lentils, beans, or ground turkey.
• Be careful when it comes to toppings like cheese or sour cream. Opt for some fresh chopped herbs, fresh avocado or just a small amount of greek yogurt instead.

French Lentil Stew from The Domestic Dietitian

A vegetarian soup that is so filling you won’t even realize it doesn’t contain any meat. Using pre-cooked lentils is a time saving tip in this recipe but dried lentils work just as well.

Ingredients

• 1 cup lentils, cooked
• 3 cups spinach
• 12 oz variety of mushrooms, sliced
• 1 medium shallot, diced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp dried thyme leaves
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1.5 cups vegetable stock (more if you want stew to be more soup like)
• 1/3 cup milk
• salt and pepper, to taste
• greek yogurt (optional)
• crusty french bread (optional)

Method

1. If you aren’t using pre-cooked lentils, cook lentils according to package instructions
2. In a large stockpot, heat olive oil over medium heat
3. Add shallot and mushrooms to pan and let cook for about 5 minutes
5. Season with salt and pepper
6. Add garlic and thyme to pot and stir
7. Cook until garlic becomes fragrant, about 1 minute. Then add white wine
8. Add milk and vegetable stock to pot and bring to a boil
9. Ladle half of your soup mixture into a blender and puree until smooth
10. Ladle back into pot with remaining soup
11. Ladle pureed mixture back into pot with remaining soup
12. Add cooked lentils and spinach to pot
13. Allow to come to boil again and check seasoning, add more salt and pepper if necessary

Brynn is an RD and owner of the blog The Domestic Dietitian, geared towards helping people & families create happy and healthy lifestyles in the real world. In her spare time, she loves spending time with her husband and two kids, drinking red wine and watching anything on Bravo.

Thank you, Brynn!

What’s your favorite soup or stew?