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Jill Wendholt Silva: Caribbean Shrimp Soup's got shrimp & spice, mon, with less sodium

CAN'T AFFORD a Caribbean cruise? Let your taste buds transport you to the tropics. Caribbean Shrimp Soup is a zesty dish that will help you get bikini-ready without taking a vacation from flavor. The soup's taste and quick assembly come from using a combination of low-sodium vegetable juice with vegetable stock, plus plenty of minced ginger and jalapeño for heat.

CAN'T AFFORD a Caribbean cruise? Let your taste buds transport you to the tropics.

Caribbean Shrimp Soup is a zesty dish that will help you get bikini-ready without taking a vacation from flavor. The soup's taste and quick assembly come from using a combination of low-sodium vegetable juice with vegetable stock, plus plenty of minced ginger and jalapeño for heat.

Toss a few plump shrimp (low in calories, low in fat and a good source of iron, potassium and niacin) into the pot with red peppers and frozen corn kernels for color and good nutrition. Top the dish off with an exotic garnish of fresh, silky papaya, filled with vitamins A and C.

Shopping tips: Use frozen, uncooked large shelled and deveined shrimp, thawed and well-drained, instead of fresh shrimp.

This soup is also excellent with fish. Substitute the shrimp with 1 pound of firm-textured fish steaks, such as swordfish or halibut. Cut fish into 1/2- to 3/4-inch cubes; discard skin and bone. Add fish to soup as directed for shrimp. Cook until fish is done and flakes easily.

When selecting ripe papayas, look for fruit with vivid golden-orange skin that should give slightly to pressure.

For testing purposes, testers used Kitchen Basics vegetable stock, which lists 330 milligrams sodium per cup.

Cooking tips: To peel tomatoes, slash the bottom of the tomato. Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Place the tomato in the boiling water for 15 to 30 seconds, then immerse in ice water. The skin will peel off easily.

For a milder, family-friendly soup, you might use half a jalapeño pepper.

CARIBBEAN SHRIMP SOUP

1/2 onion, chopped

1/2 sweet red pepper, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1/2 to 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced

1 tablespoon finely minced ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 cups low-sodium tomato vegetable juice

2 cups vegetable stock

2/3 cup frozen corn

1 large tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 pound fresh large shrimp, shelled and deveined

Juice of 1 lime

3/4 cup peeled, seeded and chopped papaya

Spray a Dutch oven with nonstick spray and heat pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, red pepper, carrot, jalapeño pepper, ginger and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until onion is tender, about 4 to 5 minutes.

Add juice, vegetable stock, corn, tomato, cumin and pepper. Cover and heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer 15 to 20 minutes.

Stir in shrimp and lime juice; cover and cook just until shrimp are done and turn pink, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Ladle into individual bowls; garnish each with about 2 tablespoons chopped papaya. Makes 6 servings.

Per 1 1/2 cup serving: 179 calories (13 percent from fat), 3 grams total fat (trace saturated fat), 115 milligrams cholesterol, 17 grams carbohydrates, 21 grams protein, 146 milligrams sodium, 3 grams dietary fiber.

Jill Wendholt Silva is an award-winning food journalist and editor for the Kansas City Star. She is the author of the cookbook "Eating for Life" ($24.95, Kansas City Star Co.), featuring 100 recipes from her weekly column. Contact her at

jsilva@kcstar.com.