Condensed Soups – Cream of “Whatever” Soup Substitute

Hello!

Have you ever had a recipe that you wanted to make plant based and then you saw it called for a can of condensed cream of… whatever soup? There are a few family recipes that I’ve wanted to make vegan-friendly and found they used cream of celery, cream of mushroom, cream of chicken, or cream of tomato condensed soup. I wanted to find out how I can make it myself and have it be dairy-free and for cream of chicken, animal-free.

I found this post from A Frugal Simple Life last year when I wanted to make ‘chicken’ and dumplings… which hopefully I’ll be making soon again and posting it. ANYWAY – here it has a base for all “cream of whatever” soup and then tells you what to do differently for each one. Since I’ve used this a lot I wanted to post it on here and show you what I do to “veganize” it. And I’m sure I’ll be referencing back to this post a few more times with soups and casseroles soon to come with the cooler weather.

I’ve made the cream of mushroom and the cream of celery using these recipes to add to casseroles and it turned out great!

Condensed Cream of Tomato Soup Substitute

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons butter (earth balance) or oil
• 3 Tablespoons flour
• Salt and a dash of pepper
• 1 1/4 cup tomato juice
• Dash of garlic powder, onion powder, dried basil, and dried oregano OR Italian seasoning

Directions

1. Melt butter or heat oil in saucepan. Whisk in flour and seasonings until a thick paste (roux). Cook over medium heat until bubbly. Add tomato juice slowly, stirring with wire whisk to prevent lumps. Add in seasonings. Cook until the soup is thickened.

Condensed Cream of Mushroom or Celery Soup Substitute

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup mushrooms or celery, diced
• 1 tbsp minced onion
• 3 Tablespoons butter (earth balance) or oil
• 3 Tablespoons flour
• Salt and a dash of pepper
• 1 1/4 cup unsweetened plant-based milk

Directions

1. Melt butter or heat oil in saucepan. Add mushrooms and onion and cook for a few minutes. Whisk in flour and seasonings until a thick paste (roux). Cook over medium heat until bubbly. Add unsweetened plant-based milk slowly, stirring with wire whisk to prevent lumps. Simmer until thick.

Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons butter (earth balance) or oil
• 3 Tablespoons flour
• 1/4 tsp poultry seasoning
• Salt and a dash of pepper
• 1 1/4 cup vegetable stock or water with 1/2 “chicken” bouillon cube dissolved

Directions

1. Melt butter or heat oil in saucepan. Whisk in flour and seasonings until a thick paste (roux). Cook over medium heat until bubbly. Add stock slowly, stirring with wire whisk to prevent lumps. Cook until thick.