Fromage St. Mung

When looking for low-fat entrees, soups almost always come out on top. It’s easy to fool our fat-craving stomachs into thinking we’re getting a richer, heartier soup by pureeing all or some of the ingredients and serving the soup with low-fat yogurt to thicken it up a bit.

Whole-milk, Greek and Middle Eastern–style yogurts are the richest and most reliable in cooking, while offering a pretty good bang for your calorie-buck. When portions are kept smaller (2 to 3 oz. per serving), a thick and rich yogurt adds only minimally to the fat content, while providing clean protein, calcium and valuable digestive enzymes.

Low-fat soup doesn’t have to be meat-free. Just cool the stock and skim the fat prior to adding the noodles, rice, potatoes or beans that would absorb it.

For more than two decades, Maison D’Crepes in Tampa, Fla., has been serving their version of split pea soup with a dollop of sour cream and a shot of sherry, dubbing it Fromage St. Germaine. This low-fat split pea soup recipe uses the far more nutritious mung bean with a touch of honey and cardamom to update the old favorite, while keeping its Frenchness with the sherry and the best of the original seasonings. Adding parsley at the end brightens the flavor and color of this nutritious and satisfying soup.—Courtesy of the Dalai Planet Kitchen of Marcia Barager

Serves: 8-10

Cooking Time: 120 minutes

1 lb. dried mung beans (hortes vert)
oil or butter, for sauteeing
1 bay leaf, crushed
1 six-inch sprig fresh rosemary
8–10 fresh sage leaves (or 1 tsp. dried)
3 six-inch sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 tsp. dried)
½ c fresh parsley, chopped
4 green cardamom pods, crushed
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 leeks
4 shallots
1½ qt. chicken or vegetable stock
2 tbsp. honey
salt and pepper, to taste
8 oz. Greek yogurt
2–4 oz. sherry (preferably not cooking sherry), to garnish
extra sprigs of rosemary or thyme, to garnish

1. Rinse the mung beans. Soak overnight in 2 to 3 quarts water until about double in volume.

2. In a large pot over medium heat, saute bay leaf, rosemary, sage, thyme and cardamom in butter or oil until aromatic, about 5 minutes.

3. Add celery, garlic, leeks and shallots, and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until softened and lightly browned. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Add the mung beans with soaking water to the pot.

5. Add stock and honey. Simmer over medium-low heat for about 2 hours.  

6. Add parsley. In a blender or food processor, puree soup in batches. (Or use an immersion blender to puree directly in the pot.) Return soup to pot to heat through. If the soup is too thick, add more stock or water to achieve desired thickness.

7. Before serving, garnish each bowl of soup with a sprig of one of the fresh herbs and a dollop of yogurt. Drizzle with a teaspoon of sherry or serve sherry in individual shot glasses. Note: You can use mirin in place of sherry; if you do so, omit the honey from this recipe.

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