½ cup quinoa (dry)
1 cup water
1½ cups onions, diced
1 pound extra lean ground beef or ground turkey, see shopping tips
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
! (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 (24 oz) jar of your favorite pasta sauce, I like Barilla or Classico
1 (14.5 oz) can reduced-sodium beef broth
2 cups zucchini, chopped (slice zucchini in half and cut into slices)
2 cups mushrooms, chopped
1 cup red bell peppers, diced
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
Black pepper, to taste
2 cups fresh spinach leaves, packed
6 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese, optional topping
Directions
1. Cook quiona: In a small pot, add ½ cup quinoa and stir in 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, then turn down to simmer, cover and cook on low heat, until all water is absorbed, about 12-15 minutes.
2. In a large nonstick pot, add ground beef, onions and garlic. Brown beef throughly, stirring often and breaking up beef into very small pieces. Once browned, pour into a colander in the sink, to drain the fat.
3. Add beef and onions back to pot. Stir in tomatoes, pasta sauce, beef broth, zucchini, mushrooms, red bell peppers, red pepper flakes, Italian seasonings and black pepper. Mix well. Bring to a boil, turn down to simmer, cover, and cook 25 minutes. Remove cover, stir in spinach and cooked quinoa. Mix well. Cook 2 more minutes, until spinach is wilted.
4. This soup freezes great!
Makes 12 cups total, 6 servings (each main course serving, 2 cups)
Nutrition Facts
for 1 main course bowl (2-cups) (no Parm cheese)
269 calories
5g fat
1g sat fat
22g prot
33g carbs
7g fiber
669mg sod
12g sugar
SmartPoints value : 5
