Cold Weather Favourites

I find when there's snow on the ground, I crave hot soups and stews. They're hearty and take some of the chill out of you. I've always enjoyed good Asian soups, which are generally filling enough to be a full meal.

Nutrisystem does have some Asian style entrees but I've found them not to be to my taste. They're generally a little on the bland side, which I suppose is necessary not to offend some palates, but Asian food is supposed to be flavourful and tangy. I find that when I'm having a craving for a nice hot noodle soup, making a flex dinner is the way to go.

This soup is a little time consuming to make, but despite being low calorie, it's rich in taste. I got the recipe from The Biggest Loser Cookbook, which has a lot of great recipes. Not all of them fit into the Nutrisystem program but so far I like all the ones I've tried that do!

Flex Meals (Dinner):

Asian Meatball Soup:



Soup:
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
8 thin slices peeled fresh ginger
5 green onions, chopped
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
4 oz dry pasta
1/3 cup bamboo shoots
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp hoisin sauce
1/2 tsp chili paste (or to taste)
1/2 cup bean sprouts
chopped fresh mint leaves, to taste (optional)
chopped fresh cilantro, to taste (optional)

Meatballs:
12oz extra lean ground pork
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced water chestnuts
2 tbsp minced shredded carrot
1 green onion, chopped
1 egg white
1 tsp sesame oil

In a medium pot, pour the broth, ginger, green onions, and soy sauce. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer covered for 30 minutes. In a bowl, combine the pork, water chestnuts, carrot, onion, green onion, sesame oil, and egg white. Shape the mixture into small meatballs and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. I made 36 meatballs out of this amount. Boil the pasta according to instructions and set aside. Remove the ginger from the soup and discard. Turn the heat back to high and add the bamboo shoots, lime juice, sesame oil, hoisin sauce, chili paste, and meatballs. Divide the pasta into 4 soup bowls and ladle 1/4 of the soup into each bowl; top with the bean sprouts and chopped herbs if desired.

I used dark soy sauce so my broth looks very dark- if you use regular soy sauce it will have a more photogenic appeal!

This counts as a dinner entree, vegetable, and a fat serving. Each serving (may vary depending on your ingredients) contains 303 calories, 34g protein, 21g carbs, and 9g fat. It will definitely warm you up on a cold day (especially if you add a little more chili paste!).