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A bowl full of health
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Healthy fat free soups to add zing to the wet-wet monsoon days
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PIPING HOT Soup times ahead
Most of us indulge in fast foods that are high in calories, fat, salt, sugar and low in nutrients. They are not very healthy. We can make a few changes in the way we cook or the ingredients we use can cut down on calories in any given dish radically. An added incentive to try out these recipes is that the monsoons are here, what better time to curl up with a bowl full of piping hot soup and a book and savour the rain.
A high calorie Cream of Tomato Soup can be converted into Healthy Tomato Soup in which creamy texture is retained by the addition of protein rich moong dal and low fat milk. The use of whole bread croutons and one tsp of butter makes this recipe truly healthy.
Healthy tomato soup
Ingredients
Moong dal - Half cup
Tomatoes chopped - 5 cups
Onion chopped - 1
Low fat milk - Half cup
Corn flour - 1 tbsp
Butter - 1tsp
Pepper - One-fourth tsp
Salt - To taste
Toasted whole wheat
Bread croutons - Half cup
For low fat milk
Milk powder - 2 tbsp
Luke warm water - 100 ml
Method
Mix the milk powder with 4 tbsp lukewarm water and make a smooth paste. Add the remaining water, whisk and boil.
Wash the dal and cook it in a pressure cooker with chopped tomatoes and 4 cups of water. Cool and blend in a blender. Keep aside. Melt the butter in a pan, add the onions, sauté for 4 minutes and add the pureed dal-tomato mixture. Mix the corn flour with 4tbsps of water and add to the soup. Stir well. Add the fat free milk, salt and pepper and bring to boil. Garnish with roasted whole bread croutons and serve hot.
Cream of vegetable soup
Ingredients
Vegetable stock - 750 ml
Celery chopped - 2 tsp
Onion chopped - 1
Potatoes chopped - 2
Carrot chopped - 1
Tomatoes chopped - 2
For white sauce
Maida - 2 tbsp
Butter - 1 tsp
Low fat milk - 300 ml
Pepper powder - One-fourth tsp
Salt - To taste
For vegetable stock
Carrot - 500 gm
Onions - 500 gm
Beans - 250 gm
Butter - 1tsp
Peppercorns - 4
Water - 1 litre
Celery chopped - 1tsp
Method
Prepare the low fat milk as in the above recipe. Melt butter in a pan and add maida. Mix smoothly and cook over gentle heat for 2 minutes without discolouring. Remove from heat. Add milk, a little at a time until the mixture is light and creamy. Stir continuously. If the liquid is not stirred continuously lumps will form. Add the remaining milk and mix thoroughly. Return to heat and bring to boil. Add pepper powder and salt. Peel and dice the vegetables. Sauté in butter. Add peppercorns, celery, salt and water. Bring to boil. Cover the pan and simmer for 30 minutes or until the stock has developed a good flavour and strain.
Chop all the cleaned vegetables. Cook in the stock till tender. Pass through a sieve and make a puree. Add the white sauce to the puree, season to taste. Decorate with few sprigs of parsely and serve hot.
LILY BABU JOSE
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