I live alone also, and this one is so good and easy. Does make a lot but freezes quite well.

Tuscan one pot bean soup

•1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound turkey sausage, casing removed **I use bulk sage sausage, Jimmy Dean
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 (15-1/2-ounce) cans great northern beans, undrained
• 1 (14-1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups fresh spinach, washed and patted dry **I use canned whole leaf spinach, drain well, and add as much as you want Have used fresh spinach for company, but canned works for me.

ALSO I add 1/2 cup Ditalini pasta and let it cook the last 15 minutes of the cooking process

1.In a large soup pot, heat oil over high heat. Add sausage, onion, and garlic, and cook 6 to 8 minutes, or until no pink remains, stirring frequently to break up the meat.

2.Add remaining ingredients except spinach; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in spinach, and serve.

Barb, for a single person making a normal sized batch of soup is a good idea, as you can freeze the remainder in single serve portions and consume as you wish. Even easier when you don't have to cook the whole thing from scratch each time :-)

Glenda, I'm happy to see you again!

I agree with Colleen, soup freezes well, or most of them do, and then you just take out a container, heat and eat, very convenient indeed, especially if you made a batch of muffins at the same time and froze some of them!

This one from Cooking Light is not chicken noodle, but it has chicken, and I just add whatever leftover vegetables I have and make it chicken vegetable chowder sometimes. I like it a lot and it's fast to make.

Chicken Corn Chowder

Yield: 4 servings
1 tablespoon butter
6 green onions
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 (10-ounce) packages frozen corn kernels, thawed and divided
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup (2 ounces) preshredded cheddar cheese

Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Remove green tops from green onions. Chop green onion tops; set aside. Thinly slice white portion of each onion. Add sliced onions to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly with a whisk. Stir in chicken, salt, pepper, 1 package of corn, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes.

While mixture simmers, combine the remaining corn and milk in a blender; process until smooth. Add milk mixture to pan; simmer 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Ladle 2 cups chowder into each of 4 soup bowls; sprinkle evenly with green onion tops. Top each serving with 2 tablespoons cheese.

Annie

I love cheese scones with soup. I think you'd call them biscuits. They freeze well too and can make a less substantial soup more filling.

I use 200g self raising flour
40g butter
60g good cheddar cheese
110ml buttermilk

Mix all the dry ingredients in the food processor, while still mixing, pout in the buttermilk, pat out into 2 rounds and score each into 4 with a knife.
Bake 15 to 20 mins.

This post was edited by islay_corbel on Tue, Jan 27, 15 at 2:34

Barb, it's just as much work to make a small batch of soup as a large one. Soups are wonderful frozen in portions so that you can have a quick meal anytime.

Teresa_nyc7 posted her recipe a few months ago, and I love it!! I have a number of containers in the freezer now, and I want to make more.

I made this in a Le Creuset oven on top of the stove, browning the onion and garlic in the fat from the sausage. Then I cooked the potatoes and kale in the broth, sausage, onion, and garlic for about 1/2 hr. I then mixed the flour with 1/2 'n 1/2 cream mixed with 2% milk (1/2 cup each) and stirred that into the soup to thicken it for about 15 more cooking time. This was very good!

Zuppa Toscana

1 pound Italian Sausage (spicy) - breakfast link sausage works fine too
4 to 6 Russet Potatoes :bite sized cubes
1 Onion :minced
1/4 cup chopped cooked bacon - fine to leave out
2 tablespoons Garlic, minced
32 ounces Chicken Broth
1/2 bunch Kale (or Swiss Chard), destem & cut into bite sized pieces
1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
2 tablespoon Flour

Brown sausage links in a sauté pan.
Cut links in half lengthwise, then cut slices.
Place sausage, chicken broth, garlic, potatoes and onion in slow cooker.
Add just enough water to cover the vegetables and meat.
Cook in crock pot on high 3-4 hours (low 5-6 hours) until potatoes are soft.
30 minutes before serving:
Mix flour into cream removing lumps.
Add cream and kale to the crock pot, stir.
Cook on high 30 minutes or until broth thickens slightly.
Add salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste.

source: myrecipes.com

I have a cookbook called, 'Cooking for One'...
I'll look for it and see if has some good recipes.

The link below is for low-sodium recipes (including soup - scroll down the page) from the Mayo Clinic. All the recipes are no more than 140 milligrams of sodium per serving. BTW, not all the recipes shared above are low-sodium.

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Mayo Clinic - low-sodium recipes

I've made a couple of batches of Bob's Red Mill Vegi Soup mix. 1 cup of the soup mix to 4 cups water - I add a ham bone or bacon ends, or some chicken, chop some onions and throw them in. Simmer for an hour or so.

Thick, hearty, filling and very easy and no sodium unless you add it yourself

I keep a bag of it in the pantry, since it's so quick I can make it almost last minute.

They (he?) have a couple of other soup mixes too, all low in sodium.

Barb, it's just as much work to make a small batch of soup as a large one. Soups are wonderful frozen in portions so that you can have a quick meal anytime.

Yeah, I use my muffin tins. Each indentation holds almost exactly half a cup, then once they're frozen, put them in freezer bags and know that 2 pieces is a cup of soup. Much healthier fast food when you don't feel like cooking.

I usually make up soups as I cook, but these are all very good and quick to put together

sweet bell pepper soup

Turkish red lentil soup

harvest sweet potato soup (tastes like Thanksgiving in a bowl)

kale and potato soup

chard and lentil soup

This post was edited by writersblock on Tue, Jan 27, 15 at 10:55

Found it. It is called 'fearless cooking for one', by Michele Evans. Published in 1980. It was bit over my head when i bought it, but thumbing through, i did get many recipes that i've made over and over since that time.
One chapter is 'glorious black bean days'. A single bag of beans, and 4 simple recipes...mostly frozen after cooking, to use whenever as to not get bored with it.
The intro has storage and cooking tips, shopping tips, 4 ingredients that should always be fresh...onions, garlic, parsley, whole peppercorns...

Like many cookbooks, 1/2 the recipes are way complicated for even a seasoned home chef. (like 2 dozen lily flowers).
....but can make most of the soups without the full ingredient list....like wood ears.

I made a basic soup last night using my freezer storage of ingredients. I just pick and choose what sounds good. (made a beef stew last weekend so i did not use potatoes or carrots.)
Sauteed a chopped onion with lots of garlic, celery, a leek that needed to be used up. Once soft, i added a pint of stock. Bring to simmer, then added a pint of salsa. Simmer, then added black beans/mixed grains....(rice, lentils, etc)
-all homemake fresh/frozen
Could have added corn, peas, chard, etc from the fall harvest that i've frozen, but DH wanted lamb sausage. It was good as a veggie 'chowder' before the lamb....

-today i'll add fresh/frozen corn, peas and chard, a cup of water, for lunch, with some toasted bread slices. Leftovers but a bit different. Stir in a tbsp of greek yogurt to the table,.
Top with chopped cilantro.

I don't salt anything....my stocks, salsas, beans. I just use some spices and lots of lemon or lime. Many veg have their own natural salts like celery. A splash of AC vinegar will give a tart punch.

It isn't clear if you are up to making your own stocks. I make one about once a month. And make a bag of beans at the same time,(white, black or garbanzo in rotation) and a sprouted grain mix. Freeze the abundance in small portions and often some greens as well. Just fill the containers and pour over cooled stock to fill the container voids.
If making a chicken stock with roasted bone-in parts, i can freeze the meat in portions to add later to a chicken noodle soup. This is always done on a Sunday...while i do other things around the home, laundry etc, prepping for the next work week.
I have an extra bunch of cilantro and limes that i'll chop and freeze in 1/4 pints today, with squeezed limes. Pour over a cup of hot water to blanch in a pyrex bowl, then freeze. Just another fresh flavor to add to chowders. (DH overshopped and bought more parsley and cilantro when we already had some)...more than I'll use this week.

If not up to making your own, look for NOsodium stock. Low is ok. My parents are in a small town but noticed FoodLion has a well stocked organic/specialty food section. Good stocks and beans and flavorful salsas. I would still start your soup with fresh onion, garlic and celery/carrot...finish with fresh parsley stems chopped fine, top with leaves at the table. The few fresh ingredients with make the difference.

Oh, and i would be happy to send you the book. If anything it is a good read for ideas...just send your address...i have a roll of 'forever' stamps from a while ago that i won't use since i use on-line postage now. I would be happy to also send a packet of one of my soup spice mixes packed with flavor and no salt. (i think my message box is open for sending your address to me)

This past spring I came up with the following recipe using asparagus from our garden. I mostly followed the recipe from here: Cream of Asparagus Soup but as I usually do, changed it on the fly, resulting in the following as-made recipe:

Cream of Asparagus Soup

serves 3-4

2 cups of asparagus (cut into 3/4" pieces)
1 cup yellow onion (chopped)
1 1/2 cup water
1 tsp Better than bouillion (chicken)
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
2 pinch black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup half and half
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup sour cream

In a large saucepan, combine asparagus, chopped onion, 1 pinch of pepper, 1/2 tsp of bouillon and 1 cup water. Cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat, and simmer covered until asparagus is tender, about 10 minutes. Process the mixture using a stick blender to puree the vegetables. Set aside.

In the different saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Stir in the flour, salt, and the other pinch of pepper. Cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Whisk in the 1/2 cup water and the other 1/2 tsp of bouillon, and increase the heat to medium. Cook, stirring constantly until the mixture boils. Stir in the asparagus puree and the half and half, and heat to a low simmer.

Remove from heat, whisk in sour cream and lemon juice. Serve.

Barb, my mom likes soup, but is not one to make soup from scratch and is on a restricted sodium diet. After lots of reading of labels, we discovered a set of boxed soups at Trader Joe's (not sure if they have them around you) that have very low sodium. There's a butternut squash soup that we both like and a couple that she likes, tomato and tomato-pepper. Just to give you a few premade options to go along with the homemade ones. I usually make a regular sized recipe of soup and either DH and I eat it for several nights or I freeze as others have suggested.

Writersblock, I have been freezing soups in glass jars but I like the idea of doing it in the muffin tins. How do you get them out?

Hi, tishtoshnm. It depends. Sometimes you can just slide a table knife down the side and pop them out. If it's something that freezes so hard it sticks, I run cold water over the bottom of the pan for a few seconds and that usually makes it possible to flip them out with the knife.

Thanks!

I can't thank you all enough for all the wonderful tips you have given me. With the freezing-- I do that but I run out of containers, plus my freezer is stuffed with stuff because of those nasty bugs that get into everything. I have my flour, pancake mix, cereal and you name it all in there. I did use some plastic ones but I heard that wasn't good, plus they fall out and crack. (That's how full it is). I finally resorted to freezing marinara sauce is little paper cups. It worked. The muffin tin things sounds good. If I don't reply individually to everyone, sorry. Printed out as many as I could.How can I go about getting the low sodium material from Mayo Clinic. Library does not have, nor do they have the one person cookbook. I will try Amazon.NhBabs, that soup mix sounds wonderful. Don't have Trader Joes, although my daughter us a flight attendant in CA and she talks all the time about going to Trader Joes. I will hit her up about that. What is the brand name? We only have Bear Creek at our market, but that is loaded with the sodium. Anyway, I could go on and on about your responses. I will be eternally grateful. I always like to read about the replies from the guys because I know they don't have the patience and want things to be short and sweet. My son likes to grill, and he doesn't mess around. Barb

Sleevendog appreciate your offering to mail the book. The library did not have it but Amazon offered several and I ordered one. Got it today but haven't had a chance to look at it. It is The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones.Thanks again. Appreciate your offer. In the meantime, I will freeze in the cupcake tins. Sounds good. By the way what is Better than bouillon mix? Most bouillions are loaded with sodium. When I use them, I use the sodium free Herb Ox, but I have a feeling there is something in there just as bad. Barb

Barb, I frequently use left-overs to make soup in the morning to take to work with me on cold days. Just this morning I made potato soup from left-over mashed potatoes. Some mornings I use left over marinara sauce to make tomato soup. Other mornings, when I don't have left overs to use, I'll cook from scratch. One of my favorites is to chop up a sweet potato into a small dice, sauté it with some cumin and cinnamon, and maybe ginger, then add some water or veggie broth to it. I'll let it simmer while I get dressed for the day, or make my breakfast. Usually, it's done within 15 minutes. I just mash it up with my potato masher, add milk or more broth or water as needed, and it's good to go. Usually when I do that, I end up with more than will fit in my thermos, but that gets consumed by others in the household, or saved for another day.

Basically, I just wing it with whatever I have on hand.

Sally