My Very First Post and Some Tomato Soup

​











Hi Everyone,
Hopefully, you are following me on IG or Facebook @kimjuulnutrition. I try to post recipes a couple times a week or more. My goal is to get the details posted here. 

Yesterday, we celebrated my daughter's birthday and her favorite thing to eat at daycare currently is tomato soup. She had 3 bowls last week, half of which may have ended up on her dress by the looks of it. I contemplated buying the soup in a can because I figured it would be very similar to what she gets and also a whole letter easier than making soup. But, alas, I felt like a bad mom and dietitian and foodie, so I made it from scratch.

I used the Skinny Taste recipe for Crock Pot Creamy Tomato Soup. Everyone, but my birthday daughter enjoyed it :(. It has a little bit of prep, but then it all gets cooked in the crockpot. I needed it a little faster so, I just cooked it on the stove top. I think it would have tasted even better with some fresh basil stirred in before serving. For the record, I used the San Marzano tomatoes from a can.

Crock Pot Creamy Tomato Soup
5 Freestyle Points 177 calories

TOTAL TIME:6 hours 50 minutes
PREP TIME:10 minutes
COOK TIME:6 hours 40 minutes
This creamy, rich crock pot tomato soup is made in the slow cooker with tomatoes, herbs, milk and Pecorino Romano cheese, plus the cheese rind for added flavor.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup finely diced celery
• 1 cup finely diced carrots
• 1 cup finely diced onions
• 28 oz can whole plum tomatoes, with juice
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/4 cup fresh basil
• 3 1/2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth (or vegetable for vegetarians)
• Parmesan or Romano cheese rind (optional)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• 1 3/4 cups reduced fat (2%) milk, warmed
• salt, to taste
• black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, then add the oil, celery, carrots and onions; cook 5 to 6 minutes, or until golden.
2. Add to slow cooker.
3. Pour the juice of the tomatoes into the slow cooker, then roughly crush the tomatoes with your hands; add to slow cooker.
4. Then add chicken (or vegetable broth), the cheese rind (if using) thyme, basil, and bay leaf.
5. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours, until the vegetables get soft and the flavors blend.
6. Remove the cheese rid and, using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth (or you can carefully do this in small batches in the blender).
7. Melt the butter over low heat in a large skillet and add the flour.
8. Stir constantly with a whisk for 4 to 5 minutes.
9. Slowly whisk in about 1 cup of the hot soup, then add the 1 3/4 cups of warmed milk and stir until smooth.
10. Pour back into the slow cooker and stir, add the grated Pecorino cheese and adjust salt and pepper, to taste.
11. Cover and cook on low 30 more minutes.

NUTRITION INFORMATIONYield: 6 servings (9 1/4 cups), Serving Size: 1-1/2 cups 

• Amount Per Serving:
• Freestyle Points: 5
• Points +: 5
• Calories: 177 calories
• Total Fat: 10g
• Saturated Fat: 4.5g
• Cholesterol: 21mg
• Sodium: 600mg
• Carbohydrates: 17g
• Fiber: 3g
• Sugar: 8g
• Protein: 8g

All images and text ©Gina Homolka for Skinnytaste

---