Lunch Ladies: Soup's on! | DallasNews.com: Lunch Ladies

Lunch Ladies: Soup's on!

01:29 PM CDT on Monday, March 26, 2007

By KIMBERLY DURNAN and GRETCHEN PERRENOT / Staff Writers

The Lunch Ladies dish every other week about healthy dining options for the office.
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After a long, hot summer, the temperatures finally dropped, making the Lunch Ladies hanker for the warming comfort of a hot bowl of soup. We noticed that there were lots of soups out there, and we can’t try them all. We just scooped up what grabbed us and gave them a try. Some we liked and some we didn’t. Some came in containers that made us want to give up and head to the vending machine.

Amy’s Chunky Tomato Bisque

DallasNews.com

Amy’s Chunky Tomato Bisque

Tomato puree, diced tomatoes, cream, evaporated can juice, onions, sea salt and spices

Price: $2.29 at Whole Foods

Portion size: 1 cup (two servings per container)

Looks/smells: Bright red in color and smelled like comfort food.

Texture/taste: Sweet and salty.

Kimberly: This was one of the best tomato bisques I have had in a long time. Plus the calories were low, and Amy was kind enough to include salt for those of us who like it a little salty.

Gretchen: Mmm, a grilled cheese sandwich with Light Velveeta would be the perfect match for this soup.

Score: 5 out of 5 lunch bags

Web site: www.amys.com

PER SERVING: Cal 120 (5% fat); Fat 3.5 g (2 g sat); Chol 10 mg; Sodium 680 mg; Carb 21 g (Fiber 2 g; Sugars 14 g); Calcium 8 %; Protein 2 g; Weight Watcher Points® 2

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GRETCHEN'S CORNER

One of my favorite lunches these days is taco salad. The way I make it, I get one dairy serving and two to three vegetable servings. Here's my personal recipe. I'm listing brand names for some ingredients if I have a favorite.

2 cups shredded lettuce (0 Weight Watcher Points)
½cup kidney or black beans (1-2 Points, depending on the brand)
2 ounces ground turkey taco meat (1.5 Points)
¼cup chopped onion (0 Points)
¼cup Kraft 2% Milk Mexican cheese (2 Points)
8 crushed Guiltless Gourmet chips (1 Point)
2 tablespoons fat-free sour cream (0 Points) or 2 tablespoons of light sour cream (1 Point)
¼-½ cup of On the Border salsa (0 Points)

I cook up a whole package of taco meat with Jennie-O Turkey Store extra lean ground turkey breast with a packet of taco seasoning and use it all week long for salads and tacos or freeze the leftovers. Layer the ingredients in the order listed, starting with the lettuce. Before adding the sour cream and salsa, I mix the two together so it's like a thick, creamy dressing. Overall the salad is 5 ½ to 7 ½ Weight Watcher Points. Remember to check the Points on your labels if you use different products than listed.

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KIMBERLY'S CORNER

I just love Super Suppers. My freezer is now stocked full of chicken, steak and fish entrees all seasoned and prepped for thawing, cooking and eating. Since the lunch ladies tried Super Suppers months ago, I’ve made an occasional stop at the Lakewood franchise to load up on some reasonably priced dinners that are nutritious and moderately healthy. The concept is great for busy folks who don’t have time for a lot of cooking. You choose your menu items and move from station to station of already chopped garlic, squeezed lime juice and other prepared ingredients and add them to a bag of frozen, uncooked meat. The business also provides cooking labels for the bags so you know how to take the dish from freezer to plate. I bought 36 entrees for $115. Check them out at www.supersuppers.com.

LETTERS TO THE LADIES

Hey, are you all real school lunch ladies? Just wondering, I used to be one in the Shawnee Mission School dist., here in Kansas City (Johnson County, Ks.), I was until last yr. in March, '05, I was there for 10 1/2 yrs. So I was just wondering. Thank you very much – Jody G.

The Ladies' response: No, Gretchen and I have never been employed as school lunch ladies, although my grandmother was one for about 20 years in Duncan, Oklahoma. She loved that job and thought all the kids were a hoot. – Kimberly

...

I grew up in Dallas and my parents and sister still live in there, but I have moved to South Africa. I have subscribed to your column and enjoy all the news, it keeps me from getting to homesick. Recently, I became quite nostalgic reading Gretchen's planned day at the fair, it's been ages since I attended one. I especially enjoy the news bytes, and letters, and when I do come back (about once a year), I'll certainly have a list of things to try. – Dawn

The Ladies' response: Texas misses you but South Africa sounds wonderful! Yes, few people probably enjoy the fair as much as Gretchen does. – Kimberly

...

The Ready Pac Salads you reviewed are great! I've found them at the Tom Thumb at Beltline/ Preston as well as 7-11 at Preston Oaks/Montfort and Beltline/Royal in Irving. I often use my own dressing. –Tiffany

The Ladies' response: Thanks for the info, Tiffany! We'll be sure to mention this in our next newsletter. Sometimes the hardest part is locating all of these great finds! I was especially impressed at the low price -- only $3.99 for premium salads like these! –Gretchen

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