Soupendous
If you've been waiting for a canned soup that's lower in sodium but doesn't taste like it, have we got news for you. Actually, Amy does. Her new Organic Soups are "Light in Sodium"... but not in flavor. A cup of the delicious Lentil Vegetable, for example, has 340 mg of sodium ‑- half the 680 mg in Amy's regular lentil soup, according to the label.

How modest. She could have noted that a cup of Campbell's Kitchen Classics Lentil soup has 750 mg of sodium, while Progresso Vegetable Classic Lentil has 980 mg ‑- more than a third of a day's worth.

Amy's blend of organic lentils, carrots, celery, potatoes, tomatoes, spinach, green beans, olive oil, garlic, and balsamic vinegar means no need for a heap of salt. And each cup supplies 150 calories that are packed with six grams of fiber.

Amy also offers a thick, comforting Cream of Tomato soup with only 340 mg of sodium. (Campbell's Healthy Request Tomato has 450 mg, while its regular has 730 mg; Progresso hits 990 mg.) She's also got a slightly sweet, vitamin-A-rich Butternut Squash soup (290 mg) that will heat up your insides, not your blood pressure.

Finally. Soup's on. Amy's Kitchen: (707) 578-7188.

Top Notch
Nothing beats a handful of fresh berries in your cereal. But once blueberries or raspberries or strawberries are out of season, you're out of luck. Some companies now add freeze-dried berries to their cereals&# 8209;- Berry Burst Cheerios, for example. But they've got more added sugar than the original Cheerios, and you can only eat so many Cheerios.

Enter Cereal Toppers. Now you can toss your own freeze-dried fruit into a bowl of All-Bran, Wheaties, Wheatena, oatmeal, or whatever. Just add milk and you've got scrumptious slices of apples, strawberries, or bananas or whole blueberries or raspberries. No more Quaker Instant Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal, which has more sugar and creaming agent than fruit (dehydrated apples pumped up with artificial strawberry flavor, sodium sulfite, citric acid, and Red 40, to be precise).

Each serving of Cereal Toppers supplies one to four grams of fiber, depending on the fruit. They need no refrigeration or preservatives. Except for a touch of added sugar in the dried apples, fruit is the only ingredient. But why stop at cereal? Cereal Toppers can work their magic in yogurt, cottage cheese, smoothies, pancakes, even salad. Or you can munch on a handful right out of the (resealable) bag.

No muss, no fuss...and no more excuses for that bag of chips. Fresh Fields Farms: (866) 762-5461.

Tip Of The Month
Whole-wheat pita chips. Split each pita into 2 disks by cutting around the seam. Slice into wedges, place on an ungreased cookie sheet, dust with cooking spray and (for variety) garlic powder or Parmesan, and bake at 350? for 10 minutes (or broil for 3 minutes) or until the edges are crispy.