Broccoli and Cheese Soup
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (16-ounce) package broccoli florets
2 1/2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
8 ounces light processed cheese, cubed (such as Velveeta Light)

Heat a large nonstick saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes or until tender. Add broth and broccoli. Bring broccoli mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; cook 10 minutes.
Combine milk and flour, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Add milk mixture to broccoli mixture. Cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Stir in pepper. Remove from heat; add cheese, stirring until cheese melts.
Place one-third of the soup in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Return pureed soup mixture to pan.
My notes: I didn't have 2% milk so I used 1% instead. I think it came out fine with the 1%. Since I'm not a big fan of chunks of onions I used onion powder instead of actual onions so I would get the flavor, but not the texture. I made it the day before and reheated it. I forgot to get the blender out to puree part of the soup. Even without pureeing I think it came out relatively smooth, plus I kind of liked the extra bits of broccoli. I'd definitely make it again! It would probably be good with some potato cubes added to it.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 roasted red peppers, chopped
2 cans (14.5 ounces each) reduced sodium chicken broth, plus 1/2 can water
2/3 cup heavy cream
Salt and black pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add celery, onion, and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes, until vegetables are softened.
Add roasted peppers and stock. Bring to a boil; lower heat and simmer 5 minutes. Pure soup in batches in a blender or food processor until smooth. Return soup to saucepan; stir in cream. Heat gently. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with Parmesan before serving.

My notes: Seth likes red pepper soup. I found this recipe on the Atkins website (he's still on it in order to get into "cruise shape") and thought I'd give it a try. I didn't taste it...I don't really like red pepper soup. He said it was kind of runny and lumpy. We put it through a sieve and that got rid of the lumps. In order to thicken it up you'd probably have to add something that's "non-Atkins-friendly" (flour, corn starch, etc). It might help to cook it longer so some of the liquid evaporates. He also said he'd add some red pepper flakes to it to heat it up a bit.

Minestrone Soup
3 Tbsps olive oil
1 cup minced white onions (about 1 small onion)
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 cup frozen cut italian green beans
1/4 cup minced celery (about 1/2 stalk)
4 tsps minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
4 cups vegetable broth (Swanson is good *note: Do not use chicken broth!*)
2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained
2 (15 ounce) cans small white beans or great northern beans, drained
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup carrots, julienned or shredded
2 Tbsps minced fresh parsley
1 1/2 tsps dried oregano
1 1/2 tsps salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried thyme
3 cups hot water
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup small shell pasta

Heat three tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent. Add vegetable broth to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes. Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.
Makes about eight 1 1/2 cup servings.

CALORIES 397(16% from fat); FAT 7.2g (sat 1.1g, mono 4.1g, poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 20.7g; CHOLESTEROL 1mg; CALCIUM 169mg; SODIUM 935mg; FIBER 15.2g; IRON 8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 65.3g

My notes: The minestrone soup from the Olive Garden is probably my absolute favorite soup (unfortunately for Seth, he's not a huge fan of O.G....he'd much rather have some "real" Italian food!) So, when I found this recipe I was excited to try it out...and even more excited when it actually tasted VERY similar to the soup at the restaurant! I made half of the recipe just in case it didn't turn out very good. I left the celery out because I don't really like the stuff. I also left the spinach out, by accident, but I'll definitely include it the next time I make it (spinach isn't my favorite, but I know that it's very good for me and try to eat it when I can!). Now Seth doesn't have to suffer through some imitation Italian while I enjoy a couple bowls of yummy minestrone!