If There Is a Real-Life Soup Nazi...

...It would be my father.  My family takes our soups seriously.  My dad will hover around a pot of soup all day, tending to its every whim if that will guarantee a delicious cup of liquid grub.

We can make soup out of just about anything: turkey, ham bones, wontons, tomatoes, peas, beans...and we argue about the best ones.  I personally love Albondigas with turkey meatballs.  My brother? Split Pea from the Thanksgiving ham.  And my sister?  Well, she has a long list: WonTon Soup, Navy Bean, Egg Flower, and...Tomato Bisque.

So here we are, a few weeks into the New Year with a renewed vow of healthy eating, and a starving appetite.  But you can have your cake and eat it too.  Or at least, you can have your soup and eat it too on Weight Watchers.  Here's a modified version of tomato soup--half the fat, good for you, and delicious!

Reduced Fat and Calories Tomato Bisque

Ingredients

4 tablespoons of reduced fat butter (I use I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light)
1 onion, chopped
1/2 package of carrot chips
1 stalk celery, chopped
4 cloves of minced garlic
5 tablespoons of whole wheat flour

5 cups chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can whole, peeled tomatoes (with liquid), roughly chopped
3 parsley sprigs, 3 fresh thyme sprigs, 1 rosemary sprig, and 1 bay leaf, tied together with a piece of string

1/2 cup fat-free half and half
1/2 cup of fat-free milk
1 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Parmesan (to top)

Instructions

Heat the butter in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to medium, add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, about 8 minutes.

Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Pour in the broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil while whisking constantly. Tie the parsley sprigs, thyme, and bay leaf together with a piece of kitchen twine and add to the pot. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

When the soup base is cool, remove and discard the herb bundle.

Whisk the half and half, milk, and salt into the soup and season with pepper and Parmesan to taste.