Heinz beating soup!

It’s getting cold outside - so much so that I was even wearing a bobble hat and scarf whilst watching my daughter’s sporting event on the weekend 🧣

And tomato soup is one of those heart-warming comfort-foods so many us turn to. 🍅

Heinz tomato soup isn’t packed with nasties - but neither is it a nutritions lunch on it’s own.  So lunch yesterday I cooked up a quick and delicious Tomato and Lentil soup.  Why the lentils?  Protein is the macronutrient which is the slowest to digest - and so will keep you fuller for longer.  It was so delicious and creamy - and to my taste buds streets ahead of anything out of a tin.  🥫

Just a quick comparison of my soup to Heinz’s shows that you’ll get a lot more out of taking the few extra minutes to make this compared to opening a tin - but trust me this is QUCK!  A serving of my soup will deliver about 470 calories and 25g of protein to the 204 calories and 1.7g of protein for a tin of Heinz. 

So many of my clients find lunch one of the harder meals - especially if you usually turn to a sandwich as a quick go to solution.  This is fantastic a store-cupboard option - it’s best if you’ve an onion to start with :).  The balsamic really helps to bring out the sweetness of the tomatoes 

All you need:

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1 tin tomatoes 

I cup red lentils

250ml chicken broth / vegetable broth (fresh or from a cube)

250ml water

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Oregano / mixed Italian herbs

Olive Oil

All you do:

1. Roughly chop the onion and sauté in a glug of olive oil, adding the crushed garlic cloves once the onions are translucent.

2. Add the tin tomatoes, rinsed red lentils, broth, balsamic vinegar and water.  Bring to the boil adding the herbs.  Simmer for 15 minutes or until the lentils are soft.

3. Blitz the soup adding more water (or milk for a more creamy finish) to get the desired consistency and season to taste.

4. Enjoy!  You could try adding some toasted seeds sprinkled on top to add come crunchy texture and to further increase the nutrient density.  And/or a blob of creme fraiche if you have some in the fridge 🙂.