POTATO AND LEEK SOUP: DASH STYLE

Potato and Leek soup

AMERICAN OR FRENCH IN ORIGIN? 

This soup is delicious.

Leek and potato soup

SERVED COLD OR HOT?

 Excellent for summer or winter times.

Is a classic. DASH style makes it hearty and healthy.









INGREDIENTS ( SERVES 3-4)

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Serving size:
      1 1/2 cups with 1 tablespoon of greek yogurt:  salt content: 141.1 mg per serving / Carbs: 1

      1 1/2 cup without greek yogurt and the Canadian bacon: salt content: 97 mg / Carbs: 1

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20 onz of yukon golden potatoes ( around 2 big potatoes in size/ best choice for extra creamy soup)
1 medium onion, diced in small cubes
1 big leek, clean, diced or sliced into rough pieces
1 sliced of Canadian bacon  ( optional)
        ( ideally a slice: less than 12 grams in weight and less than 150mg of salt)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 bay leaves
2 cups of low sodium chicken stock or vegetables stock.
      Favorite brand: Pacific Natural Foods Organic Free Range Chicken Broth low sodium  ( gives flavor)
2 cups of water ( you con substitute the entire thing - 4 cups of water)
5 whole black peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon of thyme
Dash of red pepper flakes
Dash of black pepper and No Salt ( if allowed by your doctor, if not just omit)
PAM cooking spray
1/4 cup of plain non fat greek yogurt ( in total for 4 servings) Favorite brand: Chobani
2 tablespoons of chopped green onion or chives

PREPARATION

In a medium or large saucepan, over medium-high heat, spray 3 seconds of PAM cooking spray. Add the onions, the leeks, the bay leaf, the peppercorns, the thyme, the Canadian bacon, the garlic and the pepper flakes, stirring frequently, until becoming translucent and soft ( usually 5 min). Add the potatoes and let them cook with the mix for another 2 min. Then add the chicken broth and the water. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil. Next reduce the heat to medium/low and let it simmer for 30-40 min or until the potatoes are soft.
Use an immersion blender or a regular blender with caution to puree the mixture until smooth ( remember to remove the bay leaves). Or for a more rustic feel just use a potato masher instead.

You could serve it 2 ways:

    Hot from the saucepan:
          just serve over cute bowls with a tablespoon of plain non fat greek yogurt
          and garnish with a sprinkle of green onions or chives.

    Cold: let it chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours or until nice and cold
         Serve over bowls the same ways as the hot preparation ( with greek yogurt &/or chives)

Favorite broth and greek yogurt

DASH friendly products: CANNED FOOD

Canned foods

Meal time happens at least 3 times a day. And on today's hectic times, sometimes getting healthy and nutritional foods on your families table gets harder and harder. Most of us think that an "easy" fast food meal will satisfy our hunger and allow us go back to our very busy schedules. 

Just with investigating different fast food chains nutritional fact information, you could realize that you are eating tons of saturated fats, salt and meat products full of antibiotics and very little vegetables and vitamins .... Realizing that eating a burger with almost the entire amount of calories that you should eat through a day... is not a very smart idea. 

Eating fast food only makes you tired, sleepy and at an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases, obesity and cancer. Just watch Super Size Me or even Food, Inc and you will get a big glance of what is really going on. 

Not only documentaries are noticing the pattern; also you can find tons of articles about how good is for your body eating organic fruits, vegetables, dairy products and meat. So getting into a healthy life style is a win, win for you and your family. Even DASH ( Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet is supported by many studies... showing evidence of how good is for lowering your blood pressure and for your body.

organic, no salt added/low sodium canned beans

But spending too much time cooking is complicated and you should not be a victim of time. Some days you don't even have time to go grocery shopping or to the farmers market or even you are just plain tired. So getting canned foods can help you shorten the amount of cooking time and are always available on your pantry. 

Not all canned foods are created equal. Look for canned foods that are made from organic produce, no preservatives and no salt added. So the product will be made from quality ingredients/produce that are harvested at their peak of ripeness and normally cooked and processed within hours. Canned foods are great because they offer comparable nutrition at sometimes lower cost. Most of them are packed with vitamins and minerals as well as their fresh counterparts and in some canned food products have even more.

So remember good canned foods are your friends and will help you stay on track on your diet. Will also help you, thanks to shortening cooking times and their convenience.

Great for spaghetti, stews, chili and almost anything that your imagination and appetite desires.

DASH friendly products: SNACK: frozen greek yogurt

Frozen greek yogurt

Oh, I love ice cream but ice cream is full of sugar and fat. Since been on DASH diet doesn't mean that you have to miss out on your favorite things. I went "ice cream shopping" and I found this delicious and nutritional option that will fulfill your craving for ice cream; it has tons of flavor, great texture and yummy flavors. It comes in strawberry, blueberry and raspberry.

This product is made from natural ingredients, no preservatives and the best thing NO CORN SYRUP. Yasso is delicious made from non fat milk, non fat greek yogurt, fruit puree and beat juice for color. Only 70 calories per bar. Thanks to the yogurt, these bars are a great source of calcium and protein. Even better, they are really low in sodium with just 40mg per bar. One bar equals 1 dairy on your DASH diet daily requirements.

So consider, next time you are buying/craving ice cream... buy Yasso, frozen greek yogurt.
You could fine them in any mayor grocery store in the country.

Enjoy!