Excerpt: Cream-of-Whatever Soup

Excerpted with permission from Mix-n-Match Recipes (Simple Pleasures Press, 2015).

Basic White Sauce (thick):

3 Tablespoons butter or oil
3 Tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
dash of pepper
1-1/4 cup liquid, milk or stock

Melt butter or oil in saucepan. Stir in flour and seasonings. Cook over medium heat until bubbly. Add liquid slowly, stirring with wire whisk to prevent lumps. Cook until thick. Makes 1 cup or 1 can of condensed soup.

Tomato Soup: Use tomato juice for the liquid. Add dashes of garlic, onion powder, basil and oregano.

Chicken Soup: Use chicken broth for half the liquid. Add 1/4 t. poultry seasoning or sage.

Mushroom/celery/chive soup: Saute 1/4 C chopped mushrooms, celery, or chives and 1 T minced onion in butter before adding flour.

Allergy Suggestion: If you use a gluten-free flour (rice, tapioca, etc.) or cornstarch, you can make the soup gluten-free. And if you use a stock rather than milk, you can make it milk-free, too.

This recipe is excerpted and adapted with permission from the book, Mix-n-Match Recipes: Creative Ideas for Today’s Busy Kitchens by Deborah Taylor-Hough, available in both paperback and Kindle ebook formats. You’ll find more easy recipes including Mix-n-Match Soup, Mix-n-Match Skillet Meal, Mix-n-Match Quiche, and Mix-n-Match Quick Bread.