First the poetic:

It's still summer-warm here in eastern Missouri and even as I write, outside the cicadas are calling, described by Faulkner as the 'rasp of summer, August'. But this afternoon, an early-turning tree in the neighborhood began to glimmer with autumn gold. It'll be mid- to late-October before peak leaf color reaches the Mississippi and Missouri river valleys. Til then, our rolling hills will be a mix of green with yellow, then yellow with green. Just like this pretty soup!

Now the practical:
If you've over-indulged for a few days and need/want to cut back, BRING ON THE CAKE. It's counter-intuitive, I know, but follow the logic.

• You're feeling so full, intuition says to eat little, perhaps nothing.
  
• But your body doesn't understand that rationale: If it's deprived of the calories it needs, it fears the onset of starvation and changes your metabolism to preserve body energy, fat.
  
• So ... the trick is to trick the body. Give it the calories it needs but in calorie-dense foods without bulk -- i.e., cake.
  
• Once you feel less full (with exercise added, for me it takes a day) return to the normal regimen, providing the body, each day, the tight range of calories (and nutrients and bulk) it needs but no more -- i.e., not much cake.
  

Disclaimer: I'm not a nutritionist nor a weight-loss expert. But this is a weight management technique that works for me. If there are nutritionists who think this idea should be debunked -- please say so! If you like it, I'm happy for confirmation!

In the mean time, this soup was the perfect light supper after several days of good eating and, um, yes, I admit, cake for breakfast.

Veggies for Kids:
KID #1, an 8-year old finicky eater: "No thank you. I like peanut butter better."
KID #2, a 5 and 9/10-year old adventurous eater: "Goooooooood. Hey, what's that purple stuff? No, it's purple, not green. Spinach? Hmmm. It tastes like tomatoes. I LIKE tomatoes."

EARLY AUTUMN LEAVES in SOUP
Hands-on time: 25 minutes
Time to table: 40 minutes
Makes 6 cups

3 cups chicken broth (increased from 1 cup, tonight I used the lemon water used to poach chicken breasts a couple of days ago)
1 tablespoon olive oil (reduces from 2 tablespoons butter)
1 large onion, chopped (increased from 1/4 cup)
2 large yellow peppers, diced (increased from 1 pepper)
1 generous pound of yellow squash, diced (increased from 3/4 pound, I used about 1 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon garlic (from a jar!)
1 teaspoon fresh ginger (from a jar! my addition)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric (my addition, adds to gold color, also provides small spark)

Salt (I used a generous 2 teaspoons)
3 ounces fresh spinach (the recipe called for 2 tablespoons of cilantro)

Bring the chicken broth to boil in the microwave. Meanwhile, heat a large pot or Dutch oven on MEDIUM HIGH. Add the olive oil and heat. As they're chopped, add the onion, peppers and squash to the pot, stirring very regularly. Stir in the garlic, ginger and turmeric. Stir in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to MEDIUM and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Use an immersion blender (or a regular blender) to partially or completely puree the soup, depending on your texture preference. Season to taste with salt. Stir in the spinach and cook for 1 minute.

NUTRITION ESTIMATE
Per Serving: 73 Cal (29% from Fat, 18% from Protein, 53% from Carb); 4 g Protein; 3 g Tot Fat; 0 g Sat Fat; 11 g Carb; 2 g Fiber; 30 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 289 mg Sodium; 0 mg Cholesterol, WW 1

SOURCE
Adapted from Gourmet June 1994