This cold weather has me wanting soup! A base of broth and milk make this chowder lighter than some traditional recipes - under 10g fat! Note that pre-shredded cheeses tend to be packed with corn starch or other additives that prevent sticking and clumping, which may result in some separation when added to hot liquids. I recommend shredding your own cheese for this dish.

• 4 oz cooked and diced boneless skinless chicken breast
• 1 cup yellow corn
• 1.5 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups milk
• 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 slices bacon
• 1 small to medium onion,chopped
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1 large red potato, diced (about 8 oz)
• 1/2 small red bell pepper, diced
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tbsp fresh minced thyme

Slice bacon into 1 inch pieces and render in heavy bottom sauce pan. When browned, remove to drain on paper towels. Discard all but 1 to 2 tsp fat. Saute onion in bacon fat until translucent. Add carrot, potato, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes until vegetables are soft. 

Add milk, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer (but do not boil). Add thyme and bell pepper. Stir in cheese until melted. Sprinkle reserved bacon over soup when served.

Nutritional information (1/6 recipe) - 221 calories, 9.4g fat, 19.5g carbohydrates, 7.1g sugars, 15.7g protein

If linking - please link to the recipe entry on my blog.

From Chatelaine Magazine

Ingredients

• 500 g turkey sausages, about 5, casings removed
• 1  small onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno or poblano pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 900 mL carton low-sodium chicken broth
• 540 mL can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups packed chopped kale
• 1/4 cup lime juice

Instructions

• Heat a large pot over medium. Add sausages. Using a fork to break up meat, cook, stirring often, until no pink remains, 4 to 5 min. Stir in onion, pepper, garlic, chili powder and tomato paste. Coo****il onion starts to soften, 2 to 3 min.
• Add broth and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-high. Add beans and kale. Cook, stirring occasionally. until kale is cooked, about 5 more min. Remove from heat. Stir in lime juice just before serving.

  Substitution Tip:

  Use chicken or Italian sausages instead of turkey.

  Nutrition (per Serving)

  calories 274 

  protein 28 g

  carbohydrates 22 g

  fat 9 g

  fibre 7 g

  sodium 1312 mg

•  

This recipe looks delicious! I recently changed my diet to Paleo, so the oats would have to eliminated in my recipe. I just posted a new recipe, Oatless Oatmeal on my Paleo blog. 

I am quite the foodie and recently converted to the Paleo diet and I feel great! Ever since I changed my eating habits I have been searching online for healthy Paleo Recipes. Hope you guys enjoy these recipes as well! 

Recipe credit to  Formerfatdudes.com

Homemade Protein Bars

The Dry Stuff
1 cup rolled oats (anything but instant)
1 cup cooked quinoa (or a second cup of oats)
1-1/2 cups protein powder (unflavored or vanilla)
1/4 cup ground flax seed

The Wet Stuff
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup Splenda or other sweetener
2 eggs

Other Stuff
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 cup dried fruit

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x8 baking pan with non-stick spray.

Mix the dry stuff together in medium bowl.

Mix the wet stuff together in a larger bowl.

Dump the dry stuff in to the wet stuff and mix well. Fold in your nuts and fruit.

Pour in to baking pan, bake about 18-20 minutes.

Makes 12 bars. Store in fridge, or freeze and take out about 4-5 hours before eating.

Variations! It's all about the variety.
I use an unflavored, unsweetened protein powder. If you use a pre-sweetened (vanilla, chocolate or whatever you like!) you may want to eliminate the extra sweetener... unless you want it a bit on the sweet side.

Instead of peanut butter, I've used walnut butter and sunflower seed butter that I've made. I've also used peanut butter powder in which case you need to add some water per the powder instructions, and maybe a bit of oil to keep them from being too dry.

On the nuts and fruits, go with what you have or what you're in the mood for. Also try adding some other extras like SF chocolate chips or some shredded coconut (would be good with dates I bet!).

Also, instead of bars, try spooning out 1/4 cup portions and flatten in to rounds, it will make a sort of cookie. If you do this, you'll only need to bake them about 8-12 minutes.

That's it! Try it out and leave a comment with your favorite variations.