January is National Soup Month
January is National Soup Month and you can’t ask for a better time of the year to enjoy soup. With all the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday food behind us, what a great time to lighten up our diet. Just imagine……. A meal that is easy to make, comforting and nutritious. Something that can be an excellent quick lunch or an elegant main course. And best of all, a dish that can be cooked in one pot.
I see a very broad category of food here including the more common broth and cream based soups as well as hearty stews, gumbos and chili. A quick inventory of my pantry and freezer yielded 16 different kinds of “soups”. Since I enjoy cooking, home-made is usually my first choice. Very little compares to the aromas as they fill the kitchen on a cool evening. Plus, making your own soup puts you in control of things like fat and salt content.
If convenience or saving time is a priority, there is a huge selection of prepared soups that are very good. The most recognized products still come in cans but there are now ready-to-serve soups, instant soup pouches, single serving cups and microwaveable containers. Varieties designed for the health conscious as well as the gourmet are offered my many manufacturers. Over the course of the year, the 99% of U.S. households that eat soup will enjoy more than 10 billion total bowls. In January alone, Americans consume more than 57 million gallons of soup. So why not celebrate with me by lifting the lid on a nice pot of soup?
