January: National Soup Month

It’s cold outside, and I know I should eat my super-foods, but the last thing I want is a blueberry smoothie or a fresh crisp salad to remind me that it’s not summer. This means it’s time to get creative, or I’ll end up hibernating with my friend mac-&-cheese all winter.

Luckily, January is National Soup Month, and a great time to work some of those super foods into your winter-warming menu.

  

Whole Grains

Whole grains like brown rice, barley, and quinoa are perfect for soups and stews, and can be a hearty low-calorie replacement in recipes that call for pasta. Both barley and quinoahave about 3 grams of dietary fiber per half cup, and brown rice has nearly 2 grams. The additional fiber can help you feel full longer, possibly avoiding the dreadful winter weight gain. Here are some ways to try these grains in soup:

• Mushroom barley soup. This is a no brainer — it goes together like peanut butter and jelly. Trying loading it up with carrots and chickpeas for an even bigger nutritional punch.

• Black bean soup with quinoa. Quinoa only takes about 15 minutes to cook, so you can enjoy this in no time.

• Chicken soup with brown rice – instead of noodles. (Also yummy in vegetable soup.)

Beans

There are millions of soups to be made with beans, peas, and lentils. Packed with protein, fiber, and antioxidants, beans can keep you satiated while helping to prevent chronic disease.

• Try white bean chicken chili, or white bean kale soup.

• Add pureed or mashed white beans instead of flour to thicken potato soup.

• Try adding a can of fat-free refried beans to thicken beef stews or chili.

• Get your luck and money all in one pot, with a black-eyed pea and kale soup.

Veggies and Nuts

• Broccoli is super for its cancer fighting properties. Try a simple and low-fat cream of broccoli soup made with low-fat milk.

• Avocados are rich in healthyfats and can be chopped into tortilla or black bean soup. They are also a nice thickener for stews if pureed.

• For an added crunch, sprinkle heart-healthy chopped walnuts or pistachios on top of individual bowls.

At Peoria Club Fitness, we have a great selection of soups for the month such as Chicken Jambalaya, Hearty Chicken Sausage with Kale and White Cannellini Beans, Brunswick Stew, Hearty Beef and Barley Stew, Butternut Squash and Apple, and Hearty Tomato Stew with Black-eyed Peas and Turnip Greens to name a few.

Contact Jessy for additional recipes!

Get The Skinny on Snacking

With our endlessly hectic lifestyles, healthy snacking seems to fly out of the window and when you do stop to eat, the temptation to go the quick and easy route is strong and go for a bag of crisps or chocolate becomes incredibly tempting.

To ensure that you have the right snacks at hand it’s best to prepare them in advance – that way you can avoid being tempted by the high fat snacks.  Having the right snacks to hand will ensure your energy levels remain consistent and that you have the fuel you need to keep you going throughout the course of the day – vital if you have a tough meeting!

Myth: 'Snacking caused weight gain.' 

Fact:  If choosing the wrong snack foods and eating more calories than needed, weigh gain can be the result.

What are the right type of snacks ?

Here are some great and healthy snack option to keep in mind:

Fruits : high in fiber, water and low in calories and sugar.

Nuts : consumed in reasonable portions, they provide protein and fiber that can help suppressing your appetite.

Low Sodium Soup

Vegetables: unlimited amount of course.

Cheese and yogurt: low in carbohydrate and rich in protein.

Edamame: rich in fiber and protein.

Choose one or two of the below list for snack per day:

1 cup fresh berries or melon cubes

1/2 grapefruit

1 whole apple, nectarine, or plum

6 to 12 almonds or cashews, 10 to 20 small peanuts, or 4 to 8 walnuts halves

4 ounces 1% cottage cheese

8 ounces low-fat artificially sweetened yogurt, preferably Greek Yogurt

1/2 cup fat free, sugar free pudding

2/3 cup edamame or raw vegetables

2 wedges Laughing Cow Light Cheese on two celery sticks

1 cup of carrot or celery sticks with 2 tablespoons hummus

1 slices of apple with 2 teaspoons peanut butter

1 pear and 5 whole cashews

1 ounce part-skim mozzarella cheese and 4 Triscuits

1/2 cup 1% cottage cheese with cinnamon and 4 walnut halves

1 ounce reduced-fat cheddar cheese with 1 cup fresh berries

1/2 cup 1% cottage cheese topped with 1 sliced kiwi and cinnamon

8 ounces artificially sweerened yogurt and 1 1/2 tablespoons trail mix

12 ounces non fat cafe latte sprinkled with cinnamon and 6 almonds on the side

1 Wasa cracker with 1 cup canned ready-to-serve soup

1 cup salad greens with 1/4 cup each chickpeas and kidney beans with 1 tablespoon vinaigrette.

Remember you can indulge sometimes –we, at Peoria Club Fitness, say make the indulgence the exception rather than the rule and then you’ll be able to have your ‘sweets’ and eat it too.