Bella “Cooks”: Michigan Rainstorm Inspired Soup

As the title suggests, this soup was inspired by a terrible rainstorm that we got caught in on our way to Michigan.  I’m going to write a whole post about my Thanksgiving vacation, but I’ll just mention this one thing.  When we got to the airport in Chicago, we rented a car and were prepared to drive 2 hours to my uncle’s house in Niles, Michigan.  We didn’t expect the bad weather and terrible holiday traffic.  These factors caused our drive time to increase to 4 hours!  We were in the car as long as we had been in the plane from California!!!  We were so tired, cranky, and hungry by the time we arrived at my uncle’s house that we were willing to eat anything.  My uncle had a great spread for us, which included a soup just like this one.  I enjoyed it so much that I decided to try to replicate it, using lower calorie ingredients.

I actually think I like my version better!

Michigan Rainstorm Inspired Soup

1 container (32 oz) Trader Joe’s Butternut Squash Soup
12 oz smoked turkey kielbasa
1 cup (dry) wild rice

(Optional)
garlic powder
salt
hot sauce (I used a fire roasted chili pepper sauce from Trader Joe’s)

This recipe makes 4 huge servings at 7 points each.

Directions:

Cook rice according to package directions.  The brand I used cooks quickly, and was done in 12 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, heat the kielbasa.  I used my George Foreman grill, but you could quickly heat it in a skillet, or even in the mircowave.

Pour butternut squash soup into a medium saucepan and heat on low.  Add cooked rice and heated kielbasa.  Heat through.  Serve.

When I first tasted the warm soup, I felt it was very blah, so I started adding seasonings to it.  Feel free to add whichever flavors you enjoy. I added garlic powder, a bit of  salt, and a large amount of fire-roasted chili sauce.  It really helped to give the soup some kick, which is the way I like it.

I paired the soup with a salad of mixed greens, Persian cucumbers, and crumbled goat cheese, with a poppy seed dressing.

The rice makes the soup thick and hearty, while the kielbasa gives it smokiness (as well as some protein).  I will definitely “cook” this again.  It was super-simple and quick!  I was done in less than 15 minutes!!