The Everyday DASH Diet Cookbook (8 page)

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the turkey sausage and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up the sausage with the side of a wooden spoon, until the sausage loses its raw look, about 6 minutes. Add the onion, carrots, celery, zucchini, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the broth, water, tomatoes with their juice, oregano, hot pepper, and bay leaf and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in the kale and beans and simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 15 minutes more.

Discard the bay leaf. Ladle into soup bowls and serve hot.

NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS

(1 serving: 1½ cups) 205 calories, 16 g protein, 19 g carbohydrates, 8 g fat, 5 g fiber, 21 mg cholesterol, 659 mg sodium, 703 mg potassium. Food groups: 1 ounce meat, 1 beans, 1 vegetable, 1 fat.

Canned Beans

Every health-minded cook knows that beans are good for you. They are high in protein and fiber, and low in fat, and renowned for adding texture, flavor, and variety to your cooking. But dried beans take time to soak and simmer to tenderness, and in today’s busy lifestyles, cooking from scratch isn’t always possible. While convenient, canned beans can be fairly high in sodium.

There is a proliferation of lower-sodium canned beans available. Look for no-salt canned beans at natural food stores and some supermarkets. Most supermarkets carry reduced-sodium beans in the most popular varieties (black, pinto, garbanzo or chickpeas, red kidney, and pink) in the Latino food section and other varieties (such as cannellini or white kidney) in the canned vegetable aisle. There are some low-salt beans in the marketplace, too.

Even if you can only find standard canned beans prepared with salt, a simple rinse under cold water removes the canning liquid and reduces the sodium by about 40 percent. I have purposely made recipes with a variety of beans to show the available options. I really don’t have a preference of one over the other when rinsing does a good job of washing away almost half of the sodium. If you have access to no-salt-added beans and want to use them, by all means, do so.

Homemade Clam Chowder

Homemade clam chowder is miles ahead of overly salted and heavily thickened commercial canned soup. You can use freshly shucked clams (available in plastic containers) or thawed frozen clam meat. Clams are naturally salty, so taste your serving and add a pinch of salt only if needed.

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

1 large red-skinned potato (8 ounces), scrubbed but unpeeled, cut into ½-inch cubes

2¼ cups water, divided

1 teaspoon canola oil

2 strips reduced-sodium bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 medium onion, chopped

1¾ cups Homemade Chicken Broth (
here
), or 1 (14.5-ounce) can low-sodium chicken broth

2 cups low-fat (1%) milk

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup chopped clams with juice

Bring the potatoes and 2 cups of the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are barely tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, flipping the bacon occasionally, until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board, let cool, and coarsely chop the bacon.

Melt the butter in the large saucepan over medium heat, add the onion, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Return the bacon to the saucepan along with the potatoes and their water, the broth, milk, thyme, and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook over medium-low heat to blend the flavors, about 10 minutes.

In a small bowl, sprinkle the cornstarch over the remaining ¼ cup water, stir until dissolved, and whisk into the simmering soup. Add the clams and their juice and bring just to a boil. Serve hot.

NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS

(1 serving: about 1 cup) 120 calories, 9 g protein, 12 g carbohydrates, 4 g fat, 0.7 g fiber, 19 mg cholesterol, 424 mg sodium, 308 mg potassium. Food groups: 1 starchy vegetable, 1 fat, 1 ounce lean meat, 1 dairy.

Cod and Corn Chowder

Cod is a firm fish that takes well to cooking in liquid because it retains its meaty texture. For the base, many soups use bottled clam juice, which has a high sodium content. Low-sodium chicken broth works just as well, as the fish flavors the broth anyway.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

1 teaspoon canola oil

2 reduced-sodium bacon strips, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 small yellow onion, chopped

2 celery ribs, cut into ½-inch dice

½ large red bell pepper, cored and cut into ½-inch dice

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 cups Homemade Chicken Broth (
here
) or canned low-sodium chicken broth

1½ cups low-fat (1%) milk

½ teaspoon kosher salt

⅛
teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Pinch of dried thyme

1 pound skinless cod fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces

2 cups fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels

Chopped fresh parsley, for serving

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the bacon, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain, leaving the fat in the saucepan.

Add the onion, celery, and red pepper to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 30 seconds. Stir in the broth, milk, salt, pepper, and thyme and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer to blend the flavors, about 15 minutes.

Add the cod, bacon, and corn and cook until the cod is opaque, about 5 minutes. Ladle into soup bowls, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve hot.

NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS

(1 serving: 1¼ cups) 215 calories, 21 g protein, 23 g carbohydrates, 4 g fat, 3 g fiber, 40 mg cholesterol, 390 mg sodium, 775 mg potassium. Food groups: ½ whole grains, 3 ounces meat, 1 fat.

Manhattan Snapper Chowder

Manhattan Snapper Chowder has a vegetable-packed tomato base, setting it apart from the Yankee-style creamy chowder. It is important to let the potatoes cook until they are almost tender before adding the tomatoes, or the acids in the latter will inhibit the softening of the former.

MAKES 10 SERVINGS

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

2 medium carrots, cut into ½-inch dice

2 large celery ribs, cut into ½-inch dice

2 large red potatoes (about 1 pound), scrubbed but unpeeled, cut into ½-inch dice

1 quart Homemade Chicken Broth (
here
) or canned low-sodium chicken broth

2 cups water

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon dried basil

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

1 bay leaf

2 (14.5-ounce) cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes in juice, undrained

1 pound skinless snapper fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces

Chopped fresh parsley, for serving (optional)

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes and cook, stirring often, until the onions are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the broth, water, pepper, basil, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are almost tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes with their juice and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes more.

Add the snapper and cook until opaque, about 3 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with parsley (if using), and serve hot.

NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS

(1 serving: about 1¼ cups) 143 calories, 14 g protein, 17 g carbohydrates, 2 g fat, 2 g fiber, 96 mg cholesterol, 714 mg sodium, 496 mg potassium. Food groups: 1 starchy vegetable, 1½ ounces meat, ½ vegetable.

Sweet Potato, Collard, and Black-Eyed Pea Soup

Fans of southern cuisine will dig into this soup. Collards have all the health benefits of other cruciferous vegetables and are great sources of vitamins K and A. They are quite sandy, so be sure to wash them well. Many supermarkets now carry precut collards and other greens, but they still must be rinsed before using. Note: This soup is a very good source of soluble fiber, especially from the black-eyed peas. Soluble fiber helps to naturally lower cholesterol.

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 (7-ounce) ham steak, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 quart Homemade Chicken Broth (
here
)

3 cups water

1 pound sweet potatoes (yams), peeled and cut into ½-inch dice

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon crushed hot red pepper

4 packed cups thinly sliced collard greens (wash well and remove thick stems before slicing)

1 cup frozen black-eyed peas

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the ham and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.

Add the broth, water, sweet potatoes, salt, and hot pepper and bring to a boil over high heat. Return the heat to medium and cook at a low boil until the sweet potatoes begin to soften, about 10 minutes. Stir in the collards and black-eyed peas and cook until the greens and sweet potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes longer. Ladle into soup bowls and serve hot.

NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS

(1 serving: 1¼ cups) 172 calories, 11 g protein, 24 g carbohydrates, 4 g fat, 4 g fiber, 11 mg cholesterol, 547 mg sodium, 440 mg potassium. Food groups: 1 ounce meat, 1½ starchy vegetables.

Homemade Chicken Broth

Chefs rarely add salt to broth because they use it as an ingredient, and the finished dish will be seasoned with salt before serving. Even though there are good commercial broths (or stocks, which are essentially the same thing) for sale, making your own is easy and worthwhile. Refrigerate the stock overnight so the fat can be removed from the surface. Then divide the broth into convenient 1-cup, 2-cup, or 4-cup freezer-safe containers and freeze your batch for months.

MAKES ABOUT 3 QUARTS

3½ pounds chicken wings or backs

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 medium carrot, chopped

1 medium celery rib, chopped

About 4½ quarts water, divided

4 fresh parsley sprigs

½ teaspoon black peppercorns

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

1 bay leaf