Homemade Cream of Whatever Soup

There are soooo many recipes out there that call for "Cream of Chemical Soup"...ok, did you catch that? I just don't eat canned soups, don't like puttin' strange stuff in my food if I can help it, and in this intance,... I can. :)

Here is an easy-smeasy recipe for making your own "Cream of Whatever Soup". "Why?", you ask, "am I using the term whatever?". Because this is a base for cream of mushroom, chicken, onion, or whatever you want it to be.

If you want it to be mushroom or onion, chop up and saute some mush or onion, set them aside and stir them in at the end.

Here is what you need:

1 Tbsp. Butter

3 Tbsp. Flour

1/2 C. Broth (chicken, veggie or beef)

1/2 C. Milk (2% is a good choice)

Salt and Pepper

In a small saucepan, melt butter of medium heat. Remove from heat and whisk in the flour to form a roux...this is a roux...

Whisk in a very small amount of milk and broth, whisking all the time to keep it smooth. Slowly add the rest of the liquid and whisk to keep it smooth. Return to heat and bring just to a gentle boil, whisking all the time until desired degree of thickness.

Remove from heat and stir in salt and pepper and any other add-ins (mushrooms, onions, etc...)

Use immediately, or pour into a dish, cover and chill until you need it (up to 2 days).

There you have it...easy-smeasy Cream of Whatever Soup! No Chemicals, No MSG, No gunk.

I used this to make King Ranch Chicken! YUM!