Cream of Celery Soup

I grew up in a trailer raised by parents who originated from North Dakota and Minnesota.  There were A LOT of casseroles in my life growing up...and I loved it, mostly because I didn't know any different.  Chicken and rice casserole and tater tot casserole were my absolute favorites, but there was often a combination of meat, starch and vegi that was thrown together in a dish.  What makes a casserole a casserole though, really is the thing that binds it all together.  In my house, that was usually a can of cream of something.  You know what I mean, the red and white can of gelatinous goop that when mixed with milk and poured over the casserole contents made it a casserole.

Well, I found a couple of things out as I got older and started to cook on my own.  First, of all, that "soup" isn't actually soup.  If you try to read the list of ingredients on any kind of can of that "soup" you will find that out for yourself.  Second, there is a lot of fat and even more sodium in a can....a LOT.  Those two things, along with the fact that Joe isn't a huge casserole fan, made me pretty much stop the use of cream of anything.  But, every once and while, I feel the need for comfort food...and usually for me that is going to me a casserole.

I have come across several different versions of "homemade" cream of soups but for whatever reason never got around to trying it.  The other night though, I needed chicken and rice casserole, but I didn't have a can of the "soup"...which led me to finally making the homemade version on my own.

Cream of Celery soup

Ingredients:
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 Tablespoons butter
1/4 corn starch
2 cups of milk
2 cups of chicken broth
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper


Directions:

1. Saute the celery in the butter until the celery is softened.

2. In a separate container, combine the corn starch and the milk.

3. Slowly whisk in the corn starch and milk mixture into the celery and butter and mix until it gets thicker.  

4. Add the chicken broth slowly into the pan and whisk until it is all combined.  Add salt and pepper at this point.

5.  Cook for 4 minutes or so, stirring fairly constantly, as it boils and reaches its full thickness.

This version will not get as thick as the stuff that comes out of the can but I just used the same volume in the recipes I have it worked great.  A can is 10.5 oz. and I just used my measuring cup to measure that out and then I froze the rest in the same portions (or half of a portion).  

I am so happy that I finally tried it.  It worked great in my chicken and rice casserole, recipe to soon follow, and there are a few more things that I am excited to be able to make again with this recipe...it just makes it convenient to have it in the freezer and I can feel okay about eating it!  My chicken pot pie, crock pot pork chops, and creamy cheesy potatoes are all going to be able to come back!  :)