Paula Deen's Lean: Confederate Bean Soup

On a cold winter day, nothin' sounds better than a warm bowl of soup. Last Friday was one of those days in Virginia. I just had to have a great bowl of soup! While on my mission to find that perfect, filling, comforting recipe, I remembered seeing just the thing in my Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook. So, I pulled out the book, thumbed through the pages and found just what I needed on page 25; Paula Deen's Confederate Bean Soup. It's simple, it's delicious and it's so satisfying. Try it out and let me know what you think.

CONFEDERATE BEAN SOUP
Serves  4

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 pound Jennie-O Lean smoked TURKEY sausage, sliced in 1/4 inch thick rounds

2 slices Extra Lean Jennie-O TURKEY bacon, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 medium onion, diced


1/2 green bell pepper, diced


1 16 oz. can Vegetarian Fat Free Bush's Baked Beans


1-1/2 cup FAT FREE half-and-half


cooking spray


DIRECTIONS:

Sauté turkey sausage, turkey bacon, garlic, onion and green pepper in a sprayed pan until bacon is cooked. Add beans and simmer for a few minutes over medium to low heat.

Add the FAT FREE half-and-half. Adjust the amount of half-and-half to meet your preferred thickness. Serve with warm corn bread.

RESULTS:

Something that I wasn't ready for was the sweet taste that hit me on that first spoonful. The sweetness of the baked beans comes through stronger than I had anticipated. It was something different, but in a good way.

The feedback from my husband was that the sausage was just "too much". He's right. It did make the soup a bit heavy, but if all you are eating for lunch or dinner is the soup (with a little corn bread on the side), then it's not bad. The sausage doesn't seem to dominate the flavor too much, therefore leaving it out would still probably produce a delicious soup. Pair it with a warm, grilled sandwich and you have yourself a meal. However you decide to make this soup, with or without the sausage, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

ENJOY!

NUTRITION FACTS (per serving): 309.75 calories;  4.55g fat;  44.2g carbohydrate;  19.17g protein;  5.65g fiber