Are you hungry and in a hurry? There’s nothing faster than canned soup — and organic soup makes a quick meal that may be healthier.

Organic food is produced without pesticides, hormones and antibiotics. Before a food can be labeled organic, a government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer meets U.S. Department of Agriculture standards. Companies that handle or process organic food also must be certified.

To make a broth or cream-based soup into a meal, you can add more meat and vegetables to it and serve it with all kinds of side dishes.

Whether it’s a broth or a cream-based soup, you can add nutrition and texture to canned organic soup by following these suggestions:

• Add frozen or leftover vegetables five or 10 minutes before serving.
• Cook and crumble sausage, then stir it into the soup.
• Got leftover beef, chicken or fish? Cut it up and heat it in the soup.
• Brown pork chops, cut them up and add them.
• Add small pastas like orzo (rice-shaped), rotini (spiral-shaped) or ditali (macaroni-shaped).
• Add minced clams right before serving.
• Add drained, rinsed canned beans.
• Add fresh vegetables, but keep cook time in mind. Dense vegetables like carrots need 20 to 30 minutes to cook, while celery needs only 10 minutes.
• Spice it up. Add your favorite herbs and spices such as Italian seasoning, cayenne pepper, curry, ground cumin, etc., for a different flavor.

When you use soup as your main dish, you can serve it with all kinds of delicious accompaniments:

• Fresh or frozen breadsticks or garlic bread
• Chunks of your favorite hearty bread: French, Cuban, multigrain or whatever you’re craving
• Crackers
• Cornbread
• Salads
• Grated cheese

Canned organic soup also can be used to flavor other dishes:

• Prepare a chicken or turkey casserole using a creamy celery or mushroom soup
• Cook fresh vegetables in your favorite organic broth
• Poach fish in tomato soup
• Serve pasta topped with a cream-based tomato or chicken soup
• Add creamy mushroom soup to the sliced potatoes, onions and milk in scalloped potatoes
• Use cream-based tomato and mushroom soup to enhance a casserole of ground beef, celery, onion and mushrooms
• Use chicken broth to flavor rice

See how much you can do with a simple can of organic soup? Stock up on your favorite flavors and create meals for weeks!