Ah soup. I could live on soup and sandwiches in the winter. When I am organised, I make my own – a big batch of whatever on Sunday and bring it in to work for the rest of the week for my lunches. Sometimes I don’t have time though and it’s a real challenge to find something that fits my list of requirements:
- Must not contain 40% of my sodium intake for the day in one cup;
- Must contain a healthy amount of fibre;
- Must not contain excessive amounts of sugar;
- Must TASTE GREAT; and
- May be able to be used at a pinch for a dinner party since it appears to be homemade
Sound like Mission Impossible? Uh huh.
Hence why I was overjoyed last week when Mary Luz Meija contacted me to ask if I would be interested in receiving some samples of Hall’s Kitchen soups. Since I am happy to review products that I would be purchasing myself anyway, I went over to their website to see what they were all about, having not heard of them before.
You can imagine my excitement when I read their mission statement:
At Hall’s Kitchen we believe in healthy, handcrafted vegetarian foods that are made with fresh, wholesome ingredients of the highest quality and prepared without the use of chemicals, preservatives or additives. All of our soups, stews and side dishes are vegetarian, genetically modified organism (GMO) free and trans fat free. All of our soups and stews are also vegan and are made without gluten, dairy, or yeast.
They are an environmentally-conscious, local company using local ingredients making what sound like fab products… I was in!
Mary Luz arranged to have two samples sent to me – the Rockin’ Moroccan Stew (and since we all know my love for Morocco, I couldn’t resist!) and the Bangkok Curry Coconut & Lime Soup. You can see the complete product range (soups, stews and side dishes) here.
The Moroccan Stew look amazing even jus out of the jar. It *looks* homemade. I jazzed it up with some leftover chicken and some herbs for a more substantial meal:
And voilà:
I loved this – the combination of the Moroccan herbs and spices, vegetables, beans, peanuts and currants tasted exactly like a stew should taste. It was hearty and warming. At 210 calories, 8g fat, 160mg sodium, 7g fibre and 7g protein per cup, it’s a pretty perfect lunch in my opinion.
Next up, the Bangkok curry soup. Neil is often leery of products that claim to be “curry” as they are not hot enough for him (remember this is the man who annoyingly will put hot sauce on something I serve him sometimes without even tasting it – grrr – but I digress…) so I was interested to see how this soup would fare.
We added some shrimp and rice noodles to make a dinner out of it and it was pretty darned good…
With enough spice to taste but not overpower the rest of the flavours, this soup is just begging to be paired with chicken or shrimp and noodles for a fast and much healthier option than the local takeaway… This one had more sodium than the stew – 390mg per 1 cup – but still nearly half of canned or package soups.
Will I buy these products? Yes I will. The line is being carried for now in smaller, natural and health food stores as well as places like Fiesta Farms. The full list of stores carrying the line can be found here.
Thanks Mary Luz and Hall’s Kitchen for some wonderful meal solutions this week!
IN MY DEFENCE, I only add when:
1) Mardi says I will find a dish bland.
2) It’s a repeat dish that I know well, and while tasty, could use a little oomph.
3) I want Cleo to keep her nose away from my bowl.
These were both yummy — especially with the prawns and noodles.
P.S. Was that Miss Mardi using the word “shrimp”. Oh dear me how North American of her. 😉
Neil since most of my audience in in North America I am simply making things easy by referring to shrimp instead of prawns 😉
We have the same soup requirements. I would much rathermake my own, but this soup looks like a great quick alternative! thanks for the review!
It’s amazing how many soups out there don’t meet those requirements, huh?
thanks for sharing! aaand thank you for the tips to spruce them up as well. I agree; hard to find quality ready made soups. Do you know if they retail them anywhere? Whole Foods?
Hi Candice – if you go to the link in the post for Hall’s Kitchen it gives you a comprehensive list of retailers. Worth searching out!
excellente – thank you madam! Looks like they sell it at the Big Carrot (hooray! I love that place) Definitely looks like a good thing to have on hand!
Indeed…
I need to go on a soup diet soon! And it is almost the season to do it.
Oh yes, the Australian “winter” is nearly upon you….
off to check their website to see if any stores here in michigan carry this brand . . . looks delish!
and that would be a big no. so, one more place to add to my list of shops to visit when we come see you this summer!
I’m sorry 🙁 But yes, an excellent thing to look for when you are here.
I rely on shop bought soups a lot when I’m busy with work (story of my life right now) or have overindulged and need to rein myself in a little. These look great.. I am still on the hunt for my perfect brand, and can only assume I won’t be able to find these here!
Clearly you just need to move here!
Wow… great soups! Your criteria are very similar to mine, so I’m sure I’d love these soups. Too bad it doesn’t look like they are available here.
No I don’t think so but I am sure there is something similar. Of course, homemade is always best but these are excellent substitutes if you don’t have time.
This looks like a great line of soup. I like the exotic offerings.
I am so excited to find this line of soups that is not only super tasty but healthy too!
Ok, that moroccan stew actually looks/sounds good! Great labeling on their items too. I can’t believe Neil called you out on the word shrimp! TOO FUNNY.
Well one day when you get to meet Neil you will see he’s like that in person too! 😉