(HealthNewsDigest.com) - Recipes for soup have appeared in French and English cooking manuscripts since medieval times. Native Americans dropped hot stones in waterproof baskets to cook vegetables in water. When the stones cooled down they were removed and replaced until the food was cooked. In the first American cookbook published in 1742, The Compleat Housewife, there were recipes for Pease Soop, Craw Fish Soop and Brooth.

The first known commercial soup manufacturer was James H.W. Huckins of Boston who began canning soup in 1858. He was so successful that others quickly entered the field. Huckins was a great promoter and gave away free samples to capture the consumer. Huckins needed to be an aggressive marketer because Alphonse Biardot incorporated the Franco-American Food Company in 1886 in New Jersey. Biardot, in turn, was so successful that his company was acquired by the Campbell Soup Company in 1916.

Today, the American soup market is still dominated by Campbell's, accounting for 60% of all soup sales. Tomato soup, which was first produced in 1897, is one of the top-ten grocery items purchased and eaten by more than 25 million people each week. It is Campbell's bestselling soup. The company is now offering some newer tomato variations alongside their old standard. I had the opportunity to try a few of the new tomato soup varieties.

Sun-Ripened Yellow Tomato soup is a condensed soup with a beautiful orange color. A 1-cup serving, prepared, has 100 calories, 1 gram of fat, 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 480 milligrams of sodium and 800 milligrams of potassium. If you eat the entire can, as most do, note that the sodium would double and may be too high for some. I was glad to see that Campbell is reporting potassium values on many of its newer labels. More and more consumers are looking for this value, which is not required under the nutrition labeling law. Including potassium values is voluntary on the part of the company.

Thai Tomato Coconut and Tomato Roasted Garlic Bacon are part of the Gourmet Bisques line packaged in shelf-stable 18-ounce boxes. As the name bisque indicates, these are thick, creamy soups with trendier, robust flavors. Thai Tomato Coconut has 200 calories in a 1 cup serving, 9 grams of fat (8 of which are saturated), 15 milligrams of cholesterol and 660 milligrams of sodium. Tomato Roasted Garlic Bacon has 240 calories in a 1 cup serving, 10 grams of fat (6 of which are saturated), 35 milligrams of cholesterol and 820 milligrams of sodium.

Some fun facts about soup:

• Each can of Campbell's Tomato Soup contains approximately 5 tomatoes.
• According to the Campbell Soup Company, Dr. John T. Dorrance had been reluctantly hired by his uncle, the general manager of the company. Dr. Dorrance soon earned his modest $7.50 per week salary when he came up with the idea of canned condensed soup -- taking out the water. This made a 10-ounce can of condensed soup cost a dime whereas a 32-ounce can of traditional soup was 30 cents, saving money on shipping, packaging and storage. It also made the Campbell's brand a household name.
• The red and white Campbell's Tomato Soup can is one of America's greatest icons, immortalized by Andy Warhol in the early 1960s.

Did you know? Starting a meal with soup adds to your overall satisfaction of eating and cuts down on the amount of calories eaten in the meal.

© NRH Nutrition Consultants, Inc.

Jo-Ann Heslin, MA, RD, CDN is a registered dietitian and the author of the nutrition counter series for Pocket Books with sales of more than 8.5 million books.

Look for:

The Most Complete Food Counter, 3^rd ed., 2013

The Calorie Counter, 6^th Ed., 2013

The Complete Food Counter, 4^th ed., 2012

The Diabetes Counter, 4^th Ed., 2011

The Protein Counter, 3^rd Ed., 2011

The Ultimate Carbohydrate Counter, 3^rd Ed., 2010

The Fat Counter, 7^th ed., 2009

The Healthy Wholefoods Counter, 2008

The Cholesterol Counter, 7^th Ed., 2008

Your Complete Food Counter App: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/your-complete-food-counter/id444558777?mt=8

For more information on Jo-Ann and her books, go to: www.TheNutritionExperts.com.

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