When we found red bell peppers on sale at the grocery store recently we knew it was time to whip up a batch of this soup.
Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup
1 red bell pepper (see note)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium carrot, grated
1 (14-ounce) can no-salt added diced tomatoes
1 (14-ounce) can reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
1 cup very loosely packed baby spinach leaves, cut into 1/2-inch ribbons
1/4 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
Heat broiler. Line a broiler-safe pan with foil.
Cut pepper in half lengthwise. Remove stem, core and membranes. Lay pepper, skin-side up, on a foil-lined pan. Broil pepper until skin is uniformly charred. Pull up corners of foil to form a loose tent around the pepper and let stand 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove and discard blackened skin. Coarsely chop pepper; set aside.
Heat the oil in a medium soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and sautee until translucent. Add the garlic and carrot and cook 2 minutes more. Stir in chopped pepper, tomatoes, broth, basil and black pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.
Using an immersion blender, puree soup until smooth, or to desired consistency. Dissolve the cornstarch in 1 tablespoon of cold water.
Add to soup and bring mixture to a simmer. Simmer 1 to 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in spinach and cook just until spinach wilts.
Garnish each serving with 1 tablespoon crumbled feta.
Makes 4 servings.
Note: Can substitute 1 jarred roasted bell pepper, drained and chopped.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 90 calories, 5 g protein, 4 g fat, 12 g carbohydrate (7 g sugar), 5 mg cholesterol, 550 mg sodium and 3 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 1.
Recipe adapted from Eat What You Love Everyday by Marlene Koch
Food on 01/28/2015