Cream Corn Potato Soup...low cal!

One word: easy and delicious. Okay, that was two.  This soup was easy for a couple reasons.  I actually took my moms advice and had all the ingredients ready before hand so I just had to throw 'em all in the pan. Why didn't I do this before? I chopped the onion and potato and measured out the rest of the ingredients, too. I have a ton of this soup left over, but I figure it will get better with time seeing as it has a ton of spices that will soak into the potatoes and such.  Here is the printable version.  It is also called corn chowder.  


1 1/2 teaspoons canola oil
2 large onions, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced- I added yellow and orange for color.  I would add more spice, possibly
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
3 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
1 bay leaf
2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 potato, peeled and diced
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 12-ounce can nonfat evaporated milk
Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
Pinch cayenne pepper
You can add some 


 Heat oil in a large heavy saucepan over low heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Add celery, bell pepper, garlic and cumin; cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Add broth, thyme and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add corn and potatoes, return to a simmer and cook until all the vegetables are tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Place cornstarch in a small bowl, slowly add evaporated milk, stirring until smooth. Stir into the soup and return to a simmer. Cook, stirring, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne.

Let's be honest. I didn't follow any of the directions for boiling, covering, etc. I like spice, so I added cayenne and pepper to the end soup.  It will be really good, though, for cold nights to come! If you are a fan of the corn cream soup at Chili's (I FREAKING LOVE THAT SOUP), it  has more calories but I do hope to make it soon and post! 

Green-er purple monster

I tried this smoothie idea from "Sing for Your Supper" blog, which I highly highly recommend. She describes her smoothie as green that turned brown from the mixture of colors.  

Mine turned purple....go figure.  It's a great way to get your veggie in the morning! Love that about this smoothie.  When my honey came out of the jar, it made the sounds like the aliens on "Signs."  I can't write it in words what it sounded like..but I imagine "kajjhfjjjss...." 

Green Monster Smoothie, Sing for Your Supper recipe (my variations added) 

• 1 banana, roughly chopped - I had old ones that I had frozen. Worked fine.
• 4 or 5 strawberries
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• 1 small peach, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 heaping cup (or more) fresh spinach leaves, thoroughly rinsed. Add more!
• splash vanilla soy milk - I don't like soy (or at least I don't think I do..so I drink Almond milk. It worked great.)
• 1 tablespoon Greek yogurt
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1/2 cup crushed ice

The goods, all in one.  As gross as it sounds, add more spinach than you want.
It's your veggie in a smoothie! 

One of the many great ready to serve things in freezer section.  

So, this is my mom's blender.
You work with what you have- I highly recommend a smoothie maker, though.  
Guess when it was created. '83? 

First, I am in love with this yogurt. It isn't as expensive as the other greek yogurts.
Plus, who can resist that commercial with Uncle Jesse from Full House aka John Stamos.

So many options..

Note: If you see the spinach isn't blending with the rest, do NOT put your fork in the blender.  

The last of my honey from the farmers market. 

Almost done.

Final product. 

It's Greek to me.

Very proud of my Greek salad today. It is so yummy! Even a dressing from scratch.