Thanks so much to Progresso™ for sponsoring these delicious soup and salad lunch ideas. I was paid for my time to create this post, but all content and opinions are my own.
What do you like to have for weekday lunches? My line of work means sometimes I have a fresh meal or leftovers ready to eat around lunchtime, because I need to take photos in the daylight. More often than not, though, I’m digging through the fridge and pantry looking for an easy meal. Frozen burritos used to be my go-to lunch item, but then gluten intolerance raised its ugly head, so I can’t eat those anymore. What’s a girl to do?
I’ll tell you what she (or you) can do: Eat soup and salad for lunch! I love this combo because it has good-for-me vegetables AND something hot, savory, and substantial. I always think I’ll starve if I just have salad for lunch, but soup and salad, now that’s a meal. Of course I’m not going to make soup from scratch for myself in the middle of the day, so that’s where Progresso™ comes in. It’s my go-to brand for canned soups that use real ingredients and taste like homemade!
Progresso™ has a bunch of light soup varieties (20 to be exact) that are only 100 calories per serving, and several are even gluten free. Take this Light Clam Chowder for instance. The entire can has only 200 calories (because you know I’m going to eat the whole thing), and it’s gluten free! That can be hard to come by when it comes to creamy soups like this because they often have flour in the base and are pretty high in the calorie department. I don’t know what kind of magic Progresso™ puts in this chowder to make it so rich and creamy while only having 2 Weight Watchers points per serving, but I’m pretty happy about it.
Now, I said soup and salad, right? Progresso™ has you covered in the soup department with light flavors like Chicken Noodle, Creamy Potato with Bacon and Cheese, and Vegetarian Minestrone. Let’s talk about some super quick or make-ahead salads to go with them! Some of these salads come together in a flash, and others keep well in the fridge so you could make a big batch on Sunday for the week ahead. What soup and salad pairing do you think you want to try first? Let me know in the comments!
- Warm or Cold Artichoke Salad by Kalyn’s Kitchen: Click here for the recipe!
- Wheat Berry Salad with White Beans and Toasted Almonds by The Lemon Bowl: Click here for the recipe!
- Cauliflower Kale Salad with Pomegranate by Spoonful of Flavor: Click here for the recipe!
- Arugula Salad with Glazed Pecans by The Weary Chef: Click here for the recipe!
- Chipotle Chickpea Salad by The Grant Life: Click here for the recipe!
- Winter Tomato Salad by Savory Experiments: Click here for the recipe!
- Quinoa Cucumber Salad by The Weary Chef: Click here for the recipe!
- Asparagus Avocado Tomato Salad by Maebells: Click here for the recipe!
Thank you again to Progresso™ for generously sponsoring today’s post. Please click here to find out more about their light and traditional soups!
Kelly says
It’s been so cold here this week and I am definitely craving soup! Love the variety that Progresso has! Sounds perfect with all these salads!
Michelle @ The Complete Savorist says
Nothing quite like the classic soup and salad combo. I love Progresso soups and you’ve shared some very tasty looking salads.
Stephanie says
I’d eat the whole can too, and salad #4 is calling my name! Great meal ideas!
Andi Gleeson says
Thank you, Stephanie! Glad you liked it :)
Nutmeg Nanny says
Soup and salad is my main go-to lunch idea! Love all these delicious options.
KalynsKitchen says
Thanks for including my artichoke salad, always a hit!
heather | Heather likes food says
Awesome when in the mood to warm you up!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Soup and salad is a combo I never get tired of. You’ve selected some fabulous salads, they all look so good!
Teri Giese says
Your arugala salad paired with a spicy soup. Have had Progressos’minestrone, and is pretty good. Of course,lile all good Mommy’s I prefer to make homemade, but when I do buy canned,theres is pretty good. Thanks for the salad collection!
Andi Gleeson says
I agree, that if you are going to buy canned soup, theirs tastes really good! Thank you so much, Teri. I’m glad you liked the post! xo
Ginny says
Will try these. Look really light and refreshing. I really need the weight loss. Thanks. I love the Progresso light soups only 100 calories and they taste like 500 calories.
Andi Gleeson says
Thanks, Ginny! I couldn’t believe the clam chowder was light, and I’m not just saying that. I could tell that it had a little less potatoes than I would expect from a traditional version, but the broth is so rich and creamy! I have tried a few different things to lose weight over the last few months, and none of them have worked really. Taking an SSRI for anxiety isn’t helping! I’m working on changing my meds, but I also started reading a book called The Calorie Myth. The author claims that one thing we have to do to convince our bodies to start burning fat is to do high-intensity muscle exercises like deep squats to fatigue and stuff like that. Have you heard about any of that? He raves about exercises called HIIT workouts, so I need to look those up on YouTube. My very fit friend raves about them too, so maybe there’s something to it! I hate exercise, but I guess most of them are only about 20 minutes. I should be able to make myself do that a couple times a week! HIIT workouts and light soup, and we should be in shape in no time :D