Cabbage Soup Recipe That Could Be Spiced Up And Enjoyed

The other day I was googling some healthy recipes I could make and use for our lunches during the week, and I stumbled upon a Weight Watchers cabbage soup concoction. I was about to dismiss it – mostly, because “cabbage soup” sounds like something Charlie Bucket’s four bed-ridden grandparents ate, but it got Five Stars and it had hundreds of reviews. And, it was “Zero Points.” (Full disclosure, I’ve never done Weight Watchers or been to a meeting, but I know enough about the program to know that “Zero Points” is quite awesome).

So. Zero-point-cabbage-soup-with-great-reviews.

Why wouldn’t I try this?

And why wouldn’t I share it with you guys?

Here’s the little journey I went on to “Bethy it up” a bit. I honestly didn’t change much.

First of all, I put about a tablespoon and a half of butter in my stockpot. I know this means it’s probably no longer zero-points, but I’m my father’s daughter and I love me a little butter.

I melted the butter and added a couple tablespoons of minced garlic and let that just toss around until it was nice and melted.

Add these ingredients after that:

• 1 chopped onion
• A few sliced yellow squash and green zucchini (It’s January in Minnesota. These are a little hard to come by so I always snatch up whatever I can get.)
• A bag of sliced carrots (I know this is totally cheating, but when they’re on sale, you’ve got to go for it!)
• I tossed these around the butter and garlic on medium heat for about seven minutes
• Then, I added about 4 cups of chopped cabbage
• 3 tablespoons of tomato paste
• 1 can of low-sodium diced tomatoes
• 6 cups of low-sodium beef broth (one of those cardboard containers is four cups—just so you know)
• ¾ cup of red wine (I used a cheap cab because, well, that’s what we like to drink and it’s what we had)
• 1 can of drained sweet corn (my hubby loves sweet corn)
• The rest of the leftover, chopped up chicken sausage from our pizza crust adventure. And, if the butter didn’t do it, this probably seals the fate of my Bethied-up soup NOT being zero-points but it’s much easier to sell the hubby on cabbage and sausage soup than veggie-cabbage soup, am I right?
• 2 cups of sliced baby portabella mushrooms
• ¼ cup of chopped-up, fresh basil
• just about ¼ cup of brown sugar (Again – I’m my father’s daughter!)

This all simmered together for about 25 minutes or so.
At this point, it’s all in how “done” you like your veggies.

And with the leftover sliced zucchini and carrots, I put them on a pan, sprayed them with a little olive oil, sprinkled them with some kosher salt and baked them at 425F for eight minutes, pulled them out, tossed them around and threw them back in for about eight more minutes and fed them to the kids. It’s a delicious way to feed them their veggies and they love it!

I really hope you try this soup recipe. It’s a great baseline for experimenting. And even if you’re like me and you add your butter and chicken sausage and brown sugar, it’s all in moderation. I would much rather make something like this – especially if it’s something I’m going to eat for a few days – and really enjoy it than make something completely fat-free and dread eating it. I love food. That’s not ever going to change. I’m just working on making sure it’s as healthy as it is delicious! Enjoy!