Build a Soup: Tomato, Meatball and Bean Soup for One
Disclaimer: you don't need to be single to be able to enjoy this soup
I HAVE THIS ATTITUDE THAT IF I AM GOING TO GET FAT, I AM GOING TO FULLY ENJOY EVERY MORSEL OR SIP ON THE JOURNEY IN DOING SO. Cavalier and reckless? Absolutely. Worth it? Hell yes.
Or so I believed with every fibre of my being until recently…..
You see dear reader, I am no longer 25. So I am struggling to shift the 4kg I picked up eating and drinking my way around the foodie paradise that is the Western Cape of South Africa. This time it is going to require actual effort to lose it. Bollocks.
As many of you know, I have had a tough couple of years, so my little trip was truly enjoyed and relished. I really didn’t give a toss at the time if I put on weight. But the chickens, and the bazillion calories I consumed, have truly come home to roost. On my rear, my middle and under my chin. Yay!
I have been scuttling away from my reflection, but now I can look in the mirror and face the consequences of my actions.
Not in a self-loathing kind of way. But more in a brutally honest, Irish Mammy kind of a way: ‘Listen love, it’s time to get your nose out of the feed bag. Your Christmas dress from BT’s isn’t going to fit in a week’s time if you carry on with dem crisps.’
Now fair enough, I ate and drank with reckless abandon, so it is not a mystery as to where the 4kg came from. Despite doing 8-10km beach walks daily, which goes to show that you really can’t ‘out walk’ or out run a bad diet. Yet again actions = consequences. I know I sound like an old biddy lecturing a youngster, but I’ve literally had to touch the hot stove to prove that it is indeed hot and I will indeed get burned. Or fat.
But please don’t call me fat if you see me, I’ll cry. Only my mother is allowed to do that.
It is ok for me to say that I am fat. Let me call it what it is so that I can fix it. This is about my own self-awareness, I truly don’t care what you look like or what size you are. But if you are heftier than you would like to be and you’d like to take some action, I hear you, let’s do this. With the occasional cream bun and chocolate of course, I’m not a sadist.
But I’m not here to make you listen to me griping over what is largely a First World problem.
This is a gentle reminder that the festive season is the time of year for The Creep. No, not that guy from IT that will try and snog you at the office Christmas party, but the stealthy weight gain that happens when you Mrs Doyle it: ‘Ah go on, just one'.’
Therefore, although it may seems totally nuts, I am giving my diet an overhaul right now, in the midst of all the festive feasting. If I don’t, 4kg will turn into 6kg which will turn into 10kg etc etc. You get the picture. I’m still carrying another x number of kilograms from my Cream Bun era so it is time.
I truly believe that losing weight if you need to is a skill that everyone can learn. Don’t believe the bullshit that you are telling yourself that is holding you back from trying. Or the bullshit weightloss ads and programmes that cost a fortune. You can succeed in losing weight. I’m not saying it’s easy, but it is possible.
I admit, I did take my portulent behind to see a dietician, to eliminate all my ‘health’ excuses. And I am glad I did: she is brilliant and it has been very helpful. But you know what has been the most helpful? Eliminating the obstacles that are preventing me from shifting the lard. Basically bulldozing through my own bs. And that requires both brutal honesty and gentle compassion with myself. Here is what I came up with - do any of these sound familiar?
I don’t want to buy all this ‘diet’ food and then it goes to waste. I am too tired too cook. I am too busy to make food. It’s just ‘ calories in, calories out’ so I’ll just starve myself. Surely this extra sausage/Kit Kat/bun won’t make a difference. But I NEED something sweet with my tea. But it is Christmas/office birthday/Monday/homemade. Yada yada yada.
The solution? Make eating well to lose/stabilise weight as easy as possible for yourself. There are many different strategies that are working for me, but in this issue I am going to talk about taking shop bought soup plus shop bought add ins to create a wholesome, balanced meal that will fill you up and prevent you craving all the things.
To borrow from the iconic Ina Garten: shop bought is fine.
The formula is super simple: soup + protein + fibre. For this issue I am going to share one of my favourites: 300g tomato soup + 4 meatballs (chicken, beef or veggie) + 70g beans. I favour white beans for this combo, I just think they work well here, but use whatever you have. You can also add extra veggies such as spinach. I really like the fresh soups from Lidl, their prepared meatballs and whatever brand of tinned beans. AND their cheese and chilli flatbreads from the fresh bakery section - truly spectacular. Perhaps just go easy on the quarter inch of butter.
You can of course make everything from scratch, that would be the ideal. But at this time of year I am embracing ‘assembling’ meals and it is truly liberating. It is also a good strategy to avoid waste, especially if you are single or your family members are not on the same mission as you are. I have, however, added a zero-waste recipe below for tomato soup from a previous issue, just add the meatballs and beans. Batch cooking and freezing is another great strategy for soup and meatballs.
Zero-Waste Roasted Red Veg Soup
Serves 2
This is an excellent way to use up tomatoes and peppers that are perhaps looking a little sad. You can play with the quantity of vegetables as the recipe is very forgiving. This soup can be made ahead and freezes very well. If you want to increase the volume but don't have enough fresh vegetables, add a tin of chopped tomatoes before blitzing. Delicious with a toasted cheese sandwich.
Ingredients:
500g fresh tomatoes, halved
1 red onion, quartered
2 red peppers, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, skin on
few sprigs of thyme
1 tbsp red wine or balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
water or stock, to thin down
Method:
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Put the garlic and thyme in a roasting tin. Cover with the tomatoes, onion and peppers. Toss with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes until the vegetables are tender and slightly caramelised.
Squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins and remove the thyme twigs.
Pour the vinegar into the roasting tin and blitz with a stick blender. Add enough water to thin down to your liking. Taste and season.
Even if you have zero interest in anything slimming, I think having a break from festive flavours helps you enjoy them more and not get sick of them. So win win for everyone.
Happy cooking!
xoxoxo
Rozanne