Turkey Cheeseburger Soup

-->

Serves 6

Recipe from Skinnytaste.com

Adapted and Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

If you are craving some comfort food, this soup is the answer.  This is a more healthful version of other cheesy soups, but it tastes so good that you won’t feel cheated.  In fact, we thought the soup tasted best the day after it was made which means this would make a great casual dinner party meal served along with a crisp salad and some whole-grain bread.  As you cut up the veggies for this soup, be sure to cut some extra carrot, celery and cauliflower pieces to pop in your lunchbox or to eat for a crunchy snack.

½ pound lean ground turkey

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter

1 medium onion, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons whole-wheat flour or all-purpose flour

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

3 ½ - 4 cups low sodium chicken broth (or homemade chicken broth)

10 oz. Yukon Gold potatoes, finely diced (peel, if desired)

¼ of a large head of cauliflower, florets cut up into bite size pieces*

1 cup to 1 ¾ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 Tablespoons chopped scallions, for garnish (optional)

Spray some cooking spray into a large soup pot.  Add the ground turkey to the pot and turn on the heat to medium.  Break the turkey meat up into small clumps as it browns.  Drain and then set aside in a small bowl.  Add the butter to the same pot.  Once it melts, add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic.  Cook, stirring often, until softened.  Sprinkle with the flour, salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring, for about 1 minute to cook the flour.  Return the turkey to the pot.  Add the broth, potatoes, and cauliflower.  Bring to a boil.  Then turn down the heat and cook, covered, until the potatoes and cauliflower are tender, about 25-30 minutes.  Transfer 1 cup of the soup to a blender and blend until smooth. (If you have a stick blender, just place the stick blender into the soup and blend for a few seconds.)  Stir the puree back into the soup.  Stir in the cheddar cheese.  Top with the scallions, if using, and serve.

**Nutritional Information:

Yield: 6 servings (1 ½ cups per serving) Calories 254; Total Fat 11.5 grams (Saturated Fat 6 grams); Cholesterol 52 mg; Sodium 670 mg; Carbohydrates 19 grams; Fiber 3.5 grams; Sugars 5 grams; Protein 20 grams; Freestyle Points 7, Points +

Notes:

*The original recipe calls for ¼ of a large head of cauliflower, stem attached.  Then when the cauliflower is tender from cooking, you would then remove the entire stem with the florets attached and add them to a blender along with 1 cup of liquid.  Blend and then pour back into the soup.  However, I like having the soup a bit chunkier (plus I don’t like having to clean up another appliance) and so I cut up the florets. Then I just used a stick blender and blended just a few seconds to make the soup somewhat creamy.

**You can cut back on the fat by using 1 cup of cheese (I thought that was plenty.) You can cut back on the sodium by using homemade chicken broth.  You can increase the fiber of the soup by not peeling the potatoes or the carrots and by using whole-wheat flour.