On cold, below zero winter days, there’s nothing like a hot bowl of hearty soup to warm you up from the inside out. Most restaurants and delis offer a soup du jour, but there are a few special places that stir the pot with some original and healthy soup recipes. When you grow just a little tired of ‘chicken noodle’ and want to try something a different, check out some of these tasty soups made from scratch.
Natural Harvest Deli
Located just off Chestnut Street, the Natural Harvest Deli cooks create some of the best tasting, healthiest soups around. Almost all the produce used is organic and nearly every soup is loaded with healthy ingredients such as spinach, kale, carrots, barley or other good stuff (for lack of better words). Many soups take on an Asian or Indian flair such as the Thai Noodle-which as a slightly spicy peanut flavor or Paradise of India-with red lentils and a touch of cumin and curry. But, my personal staple at Natural Harvest Deli is the Savannah Beans and Greens: a simple combination of black-eyed-peas, some other beans and veggies, spinach or chard in a seasoned vegetable broth. All soups are heart-healthy and fairly low sodium. (I’m a bit of a salt nut and sometimes have to add a little. But I like being in control of my salt intake.) There are different selections every day, and I think it’s fun to try something new. I seriously haven’t tried a soup I didn’t like yet.
BG’s Bar & Grill
BG’s in Mountain Iron, MN, really does a fine job of coming up with some great original recipes for their daily soups. Seriously, I’ve been impressed. like Chicken Fajita, Creamy Wild Rice with Ham, Pot Roast or my personal favorite–
Amelia’s Family Cuisine and Catering
Amelia’s in Hibbing, MN, offers the daily special of All You Can Eat homemade (and I mean EVERYTHING is homemade) soup salad and breadsticks for $5.95. Typically, there are over three different soups offered (usually four) and the quality of ingredients is exceptional. I’ve tasted the Ravioli Soup and loved it; the taste was a perfect combination of tomato and basil (and the pasta wasn’t mushy either). My friend ordered the Taco Soup and she said it was delicious. If I had room left for another bowl of soup, I would have kept going; but the first course filled me right up. Amelia’s makes it easy to warm up with tasty, homemade soups-and as much as you want, too!
Mary’s Morsels
Mary makes a variety of traditional soups, but they are loaded with fresh, wholesome ingredients that make your belly say, “Mmmmm….” I love the Vegetable Beef Barley and Chicken Dumpling. But my ULTIMATE favorite (and the best I’ve tried around these parts) is her Creamy Chicken Wild Rice; it’s prepared just how I love it-thick and creamy. It’s not exactly low-calorie, I realize, but this soup is worth the splurge!
