As Thanksgiving is upon us, thoughts turn to menus for the greatly anticipated feast we will all enjoy next Thursday (you know, the day before Black Friday). Much of what we decide to include on our menu for the big meal will be determined by our tradition. For example, my wife’s Mother always served whipped potatoes and green peas. Down South, this is well known as the ingredients for a Bird’s Nest. You know, pile on some potatoes, squash out a rounded impression in them and add peas to the well.
Over the years, we carried on the Bird’s Nest tradition in our home, and now there SHALL BE NO Thanksgiving without whipped potatoes and green peas. Another tradition in many homes for Thanksgiving is the famous “Green Bean Casserole” (I have a similar recipe here) . I love it myself, what with the Fried Onion Rings on top and the French-style Green Beans (Campbell’s Classic Recipe)!
In my book, Cook Live Learn, I lament the use of canned cream of who-knows-what soup. There is a simple recipe to replace the Cream of Mushroom or Cream of Chicken canned soup your recipes might call for. I am going to share my thoughts on the topic and that recipe with you here in the spirit of Thanksgiving! Beginning on page 31 …
Do Not Use Condensed Canned Soups in Your Cooking. If you catch me with a can of Cream of Chicken or Cream of Mushroom soup in my pantry, shoot me. The only food I can think of on your grocer’s shelf that is more processed than canned soup is Velveeta (sorry, Kraft). They are full of salt! In a single serving of the leading brand of Cream of Chicken soup, there are 830 mg of sodium (with 1 gram of sugar). Yes, “low sodium” variants are available and salt is cut to a livable 75 mg, but this reduction in salt comes with an increase in sugar to 8 grams per serving; the “Healthy Request Version” has 410 grams of salt and 7 grams of sugar!
If nutritional information does not persuade you to dispense with the red and white cans, what about flavor that is salt and/or sugar driven? The question is, can you spend an additional few minutes preparing to make your own cream sauce for that wonderful casserole recipe? Of course you can. Here’s how:
To replace a 10 ounce Can of Condensed Soup in a Recipe:
- ¼ Cup Finely Chopped Mushrooms, Celery or Whatever (actual chicken not needed for Cream of Chicken, but feel free to add ¼ cup diced chicken at the end, if you like)
- 2 Tablespoons Yellow Onion Chopped
- 1 Inch of Raw Carrot, Peeled, Chopped Finely
- 1 Tablespoon Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Oil
- 2 Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
- 5 Ounces Chicken or Vegetable Broth (Home-made preferred)
- 5 Ounces Milk or Half and Half
- 4 Twists of the Black Pepper Mill
- Heat oil and butter over medium heat in a sauce pan. Add the vegetables, the pepper and a shake of salt and sauté 4 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over all and stir well to combine it into all other ingredients. If you need to add a little oil to moisten all of the flour, do so.
- Add the milk and broth, stir. Give it another stir every now and then and allow the mixture to come to a complete boil. Remove from heat and use as you would a can of condensed soup.
- Tip: If you need a can of Cream of Celery and another of Cream of Chicken, use both main ingredients as above and double the rest of the recipe so you can make them at once.
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