Super Soup

Move over, chicken noodle:

Gazpacho is the real healing soup. A recent Tufts University study found that people who ate soup loaded with raw tomatoes, cucumbers and green capsicums for two weeks had significantly higher levels of vitamin C in their blood.
Vitamin C plays a vital role in protecting the body against oxidative damage.
It helps fight heart disease and high blood pressure by lowering LDL (bad) Cholesterol and boosting HDL (good) cholesterol.
Since cooking reduces the heart-healthy benefits, it may be time to try cold soup.

Start with the recipe:

Gazpacho With Croutons

1/2 cup coarsely red onion
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 can no-salt-added tomatoes
1/4 cup seasoned dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 tbs red wine vinegar
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped
2 green capsicums, chopped
2 red capsicums, chopped

Homemade or purchased croutons

1. Pulse onion and garlic in blender. Add half of tomatoes and all juice. Puree. Add next six ingredients. Blend. Pour in nonreactive bowl.

2. Chop remaining tomatoes. Stir into puree with half of cucumbers and half of green and red capsicums. Refrigerate one hour. Ladle into bowls. Top with remaining cucumber and peppers. Garnish with croutons. Serves four.

per serving: 1.04 kilojoules; 5 g fat; 1 g saturated fat; 6 g fiber; 8 g protein' 730 mg sodium; 46 g carbohydrate.

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