Tonight I wanted some soup. Well, actually I wanted a nice steak, but when I went digging through the freezer for that filet I had saved for ‘just the right time,’ it was nowhere to be seen. And then I remembered I had servied steak to my dad and my sister the last time they visited. And that was the end of the steak. So I started rummaging through the freezer–what kind of meat did I want? The pre-cooked shrimp with the tails removed looked promising. I counted out 12, 80 calories. Then I noticed a bag of roasted corn from Trader Joe’s next to the shrimp in the Freezer–1/2 cup, only 80 calories. I found a can of chopped tomatoes with roasted garlic in the cupboard, about 100 calories for the whole can. Added a few chopped green onions (easier than a big onion,) spices to taste (1/2 tsp chili, 1/2 tsp cumin, pepper, salt,) warmed it all up, and topped with 1/4 avocado, 80 calories. This made 2 big servings, and yes, I did scoop out the shrimp first and made sure there were 6 in each serving! So, 210 calories for a big cup of ‘homemade soup,’ which included the avocado topping. Yumm! I love tomatoes, and grew up loving canned tomatoes, so I think they are an easy and good base for a lot of different soups. You could get ‘no salt added’ if you are watching sodium intake, or you could start with fresh tomatoes, or make your own canned tomatoes. But wait. This was called Lazygirl Soup. I’ll make Energetic Girl Soup another day.
debby weighs in 
First of all kudos to you for the weight loss. I saw that in your earlier post. I also love the pictures of your dogs. They seem so blessed to have a wonderful owner.
Like you I am going to be eating out for several meals, and I am super careful when I do that. My mother, who is in her late 60s and in amazing shape, can eat at nice restaurants all the time. But it kind of makes me a bit nuts! I get goofy about my fiber intake and veggie intake. But like you, I enjoy spending time with the friends who eat out so I do it, and I am super careful when I do. I do not use it as a license to indulge.
I thought I would check in because I haven’t commented lately!
Hi Ali, Good to hear from you! Eating out at restaurants is even harder for me–too many choices! But I have gotten a little better at it in recent months. Sometimes I even look online for their nutritional information and make my choice before I even leave the house!
Mmmmmm….soup. What I love about this post is that you made a really quick meal that didn’t require opening a celophane package and tossing it in the microwave. You actually knew every ingredient in it. (I’m on a processed food rant as of late.) Anyway, that soup sounded really good. I never would have thought of avocado. Interesting.
Yummy soup!!!
For some reason, and I have NO idea why, I am always leery of buying shrimp. I think I adore it so much that I don’t want to mess it up by cooking it at home! What kind do you buy – frozen? I need to get over it and just buy some I think!
I used to buy and cook shrimp at home. But now I just buy the cooked frozen shrimp. I take out what I need, put it in a colander, and run cold water over it to thaw it. Perfect every time. Not as delicious as fresh-cooked, but very reliable. Pretty low-cal and luxurious snack, too–shrimp cocktail!
The soup sounds awesome!
Making from scratch can be just as quick and easy as a frozen entree! I’ll come over for some soup 😀
Did you name this soup after me? 😉 I’m a girl that goes from zero to starving in nothing flat. I’ll have to keep this recipe in mind. Thanks, thanks, thanks!
That soup looks delicious! I can’t even tell you how many times I come home from the store and realize that I used up the ingredient (usually key)that I was sure I had lying around somewhere…
I think you’ve made me want some shrimp for dinner tonight 🙂
Hi Debby,
Thanks for commenting on my blog today. I agree that Vickie’s idea of again writing down what I eat for a while is in order. Hence, my little notebook and pen sitting in front of my on my desk at work!
Your soup looks fantastic. Frsh avocado makes everything better, too. Trader Joe’s roasted corn is so good – what a flavor shot that would be to soup over plain frozen corn.
I’m behind on blog reading, and am now heading to read your pumpkin post with pics! Have a good day, and thanks for the food inspiration,