Easy 5 Can Soup

I really, really, really need to work on eating better.  Two years ago, I lost 26 pounds on Weight Watchers.  After a while I decided that I knew how it worked, so why pay for it.  I'm sure you can guess what happened. I managed to gain back all the weight, plus 5 more pounds.  I lost the extra 5 pounds over the past couple of months and now I'm back where I was when I first tried WW.  So, today I'm starting again.  This is what I had for lunch.

I found a number of versions of this recipe online, and tweaked it a bit to my taste.

Ingredients:
1 14.5 oz can corn, drained
1 14.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed (could probably substitute other types of beans)
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 14.5 oz can chicken broth (or 2 cups water plus 2 chicken bouillon cubes)
1/2 cup refried beans (freeze leftovers)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 stalk celery, diced
1/2 tsp dried minced garlic

Combine all ingredients in saucepan.  Bring to barely boiling over high heat, then turn heat to low and simmer for 15 or 20 minutes, stirring once in a while.  A little chili powder and cumin would probably be good in this, if you like those flavors.

Nutrition info. per serving:
236 calories
47 grams carbohydrates
11 grams fiber
13 grams protein
2 grams fat

4 servings, 6 points plus each, (if my calculations are correct.)

This tasted good, was quite filling and helped me towards my 5 or more fruit and vegetable servings for the day.  I also like the fact that I can easily keep the basic ingredients in my pantry.

Zero Point Vegetable Soup

I'm always on the lookout for low point weight watchers recipes.  I found a zero point vegetable soup recipe and it inspired me to create my own, using what I had on hand. This is easy, filling and zero points plus. Crockpot Vegetable soup I used a crockpot but this would be easy to adapt to stovetop. Amounts are approximate, I just chopped veggies and tossed them in. 1 package dry onion soup mix 8 cups water 1 1/2 cups canned crushed or diced tomatoes (I used leftovers, but I think a 14 oz can would work.) 3 or 4 beef or vegetable bouillon cubes 1 cup salsa (mostly because I was trying to clean stuff out of refrigerator, I used medium but both dh and I found the soup a bit too zippy, I'd use mild next time) 1 each: medium onion, large carrot, large celery rib, chopped 1 each: medium zucchini, and summer squash, quartered and sliced 2 to 3 cups chopped green cabbage (half a small head) 1 small fresh tomato, diced Combine all ingredients in crockpot. Season with your choice of herbs and spices. (I used basil, garlic, parsley, and lovage because that's what's growing outside my back door.). Cook on high for 4 or 5 hours or until veggies are cooked to your desired texture. It should at least come to a slight boil to really develop the flavor. I had planned to throw in some cooked spaghetti squash from the freezer for the last little while, but I forgot.