Casseroles. Some people love them, some don’t. But on a cold winter day, for someone who grew up in the Midwest, casseroles are a comfort food. They’re great to make for a new mom to pop in the oven, for potlucks, and more. Buuuut, they’re not always the healthiest dish. One of the culprits is the condensed soup they often call for. Cream of chicken, cream of celery, cream of mushroom. You know what I’m talking about. Even people that aren’t from the Midwest know about the little pot of heaven that is green bean casserole.
The game changer
As I started trying to clean up what my family was eating, condensed soup is one of the areas I just didn’t really know how to address aside from avoiding foods that called for condensed soup. I knew that canned goods often leech BPA and other contaminants into their food. And I knew there were ingredients in the condensed soups that I wanted to avoid. But, knowing all of this without having a good solution just left me missing the convenience of casseroles! Then, I learned that I could make my own. So, I tried it and quickly realized how ridiculously quick and easy it is to make condensed soup. Total. game. changer! I am confident you will fall in love with these recipes for their simplicity…and they’re way better for you than the canned alternatives! I’m all about healthier ways of doing things that don’t make life overwhelming!
Below you will find recipes for Cream of Chicken, Celery, and Mushroom soups. Whether you’re avoiding a bunch of sketchy ingredients that you can’t pronounce, or just an extra trip to the store, I think you’ll love them!
Cream of Chicken Soup
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons salted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ cup chicken broth or stock
½ cup milk (any percent)
½ teaspoon garlic salt (or ½ teaspoon each garlic powder and salt)
¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions:
In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add flour to the pan and whisk together to make a roux (about 1 to 1 ½ minutes). Add the chicken broth and milk and whisk together to smooth out the lumps. Stir in garlic salt. Bring to a simmer and continue cooking until mixture thickens, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and use as you would one can of condensed cream of chicken soup.
Note: This recipe makes 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soup. My favorite thing about this recipe (aside from the fact that it’s easy) is the soup doesn’t have that disgusting yellow color. Who even knows what’s making store-bought cream of chicken soups yellow?!
Cream of Celery Soup
Ingredients:
¼ cup butter
1 cup celery, finely diced
½ yellow onion
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
¼ cup flour
½ cup evaporated milk (see note below for substitutions)
½ cup chicken broth
Instructions:
Add the butter to a saucepan and melt. Add in the onion, celery, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally for 5-7 minutes. Add in the flour and stir ingredients together well for about a minute to let the flour cook a bit. Add in the evaporated milk and chicken broth and cook until thickened.
If you’d like to enjoy this as a bowl of soup by itself, replace the evaporated milk with heavy cream, add in your favorite veggies like onion and carrot, and slice your celery in bigger chunks.
Note: this recipe replaces 2 cans of cream of celery soup.
Note: if you do not have evaporated milk, you can substitute it with equal amounts of whole milk, 2% milk, half and half, or heavy cream. Or you can make your own evaporated milk by heating 2 ¼ cups of milk (any percent) over medium-high heat until just boiling. Reduce heat to medium or medium-low and continue to cook and stir for 25 minutes until it cooks down to 1 cup.
Cream of Mushroom Soup
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter
½ cup finely chopped mushrooms (baby bella or white button mushrooms)
1 garlic clove, minced (optional)
3 ½ tablespoons flour
½ cup broth, divided (chicken, beef, or vegetable)
Salt & pepper to taste
½ cup milk (2% or whole)
Instructions:
Measure all ingredients before starting. Mix ¼ cup of your broth with your flour, salt, and pepper in a small bowl until smooth. Set aside. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add in mushrooms and garlic and cook until mushrooms reduce in size. Add remaining ¼ cup of broth and milk. Gradually pour in your flour mixture, stirring constantly until mixture completely blends. Continue stirring constantly until sauce thickens and begins to bubble. Remove from heat and add to any recipe as a substitute for one can of condensed cream of mushroom soup.
To make this recipe into a creamy mushroom soup that can be eaten by itself, mix with an additional 1/3 to 1/2 cup of broth.
