One of my favorite things to cook when it’s cold outside is soup. Homemade soup is wonderful because you get to choose what goes into it, and as a result, you typically end up with much healthier (e.g., lower sodium, lower fat) soup compared to the canned ones you find in the store. Here’s one of my favorite:

Butternut Squash, Carrot & Chicken Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 large cooked chicken breasts (~6-8 ounces each) shredded
• 3 cups peeled, diced butternut squash
• 2 cups thinly sliced carrots
• 3/4 cup diced yellow onion
• 1 tbsp butter *try using real butter…the caloric difference is minimal compared to margarine, plus you can reduce your sodium a lot if you use unsalted butter!
• 28-32 oz chicken broth (~2 cans or 1 large box)
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup fat free half and half

Directions:

1. Cook chicken in chicken stock for ~15 minutes (or until fully cooked).
2. While chicken is cooking (step 1), cook squash, carrot, and onion in hot butter in large covered cooking pot (~ 8 minutes).
3. Remove chicken and let cool. Once cooled, shred and set to the side.
4. Add chicken stock to squash, carrot, and onion mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 25-35 minutes. Vegetables should be very tender.
5. Place 1/2 of slightly cooled vegetable mixture to food processor or blender. Process/blend until almost smooth and then add remaining vegetable mixture.
6. Return processed/blended vegetable mixture to cooking pot (mixture should be very smooth) and add nutmeg, fat free half, and half, and chicken.
7. Enjoy. 🙂

Serves 4, nutrition facts per serving:

• Calories: 263
• Fat: 4 grams
• Carbohydrate: 28 grams
• Protein: 28 grams

BTW…The last time I made this for our family, I realized that our new puppy, Reuben, LOVES carrots.