Month-of-Chicken: Cream of Chicken Soup

Month of Chicken: Cream of Chicken Soup

Did you ever read a label for those little miracle cans of cream-of-something soups? I once read a dietician who said that if you can’t pronounce it, you shouldn’t eat it.

OMG. Do you really want to put unpronounceables into your body and the bodies of those you love???

On the other hand, who doesn’t love the convenience of a quick leftovers- casserole held together with cream-of-something soup? Or have you wanted to make a chicken pot pie for dinner and needed an easy but thick base liquid?

But, please, with a little planning ahead, you can avoid the unpronounceable chemicals and extra sodium of the commercially canned soups and still get the result you want. This site has your answer: http://onceamonthmom.com/homemade-cream-of-something-soup/ Clever, huh?

Based on her guidelines, here is my recipe for Cream of Chicken Soup. Use this as is for lunch or dinner or use it as you would the canned soups in your favorite go-to quick meals. Quadruple the recipe so you have enough for future use with one prep.

Cream of Chicken Soup (servings: 1 “can” or about 1½ cups)

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ small onion, diced

½ c chicken, pre-cooked and shredded

¼ c butter

¼ c flour

1 c milk

¾ c chicken broth

Sauté garlic, onion and chicken and set aside.

In a skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add “milk” and broth.

Add garlic, onion and chicken mixture to a blender. Pour broth mixture from skillet on top. Puree mixture to a smooth liquid. Pour back into the skillet and cook over medium heat.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring regularly, until it reaches desired consistency (about 10-15 minutes).

Season to taste with salt and pepper and use as you would a can of condensed Cream of Something Soup in any recipe or serve as is for a meal.

Check out her site for some great Cream-of-Something soup options.

Storage:

Pour the soup into a pint canning jar and refrigerate it for up to four days or freeze in zipper lock bags in “can” portion size. Thaw before using in a favorite recipe. DO NOT CAN THIS SOUP. That is an unsafe storage option.

DH’s Rating: 3.5 Tongues Up. He likes soup, but he wants more chunks in them than this one has. Flavor good, texture lacking. I probably should add some extra chicken chunks next time along with some leftover veggies from the fridge.