Cream of Whatever Soup Mix (Magic Mix)

With so many people getting concerned about a second wave of the virus and stocking up on all kinds of food, canned soup is becoming difficult to obtain in quantity.  Making your own cream soup substitutions is your safeguard against the panic preppers buying all the soup. You can feel better leaving more canned goods for others while saving money and making healthier food at the same time.  There is less trash generated, less space taken on the shelves, and more space left for other foods.  It's a huge win all around.  On top of all that, making and using the basic soup mix is really easy.  Here's how:

Cream of Whatever Soup Mix
2 1/3 cups dry milk
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup flour

Combine all in a large bowl with a pastry blender or wire whisk.  Mix until crumbly, like cornmeal.  Store in the refrigerator.

Note.  You can also use coconut oil in place of the butter.  When used in soup mixes (or anything else for that matter), we honestly cannot detect a difference.  If you use coconut oil, the soup mix will be shelf-stable and does not need to be refrigerated.  I have read that powdered soy milk can be used in place of the dry milk.


All of the recipes below are for making the condensed versions of these soups.  They do not substitute perfectly volume-wise for a can of condensed soup.  You'll have a little extra leftover.  It's never been a problem for me; I'm usually making gravy or sauce for a casserole with it.  If you are making soup, remember that you still need to add an additional "can" of water or milk, about 11 ounces (just over 1 1/3 cups), to make soup.  None of us around here eat cream of chicken, celery, or mushroom soup as a stand-alone, so I can't comment on how the DIY and store-bought versions of those compare.  But I think this tomato soup is very good. 

Cream of chicken condensed soup

1 cup Cream of Whatever soup mix
3/4 cup chicken broth (canned, liquid from canned chicken, or prepared bouillon)

Put the soup mix in a saucepan over medium heat and add the broth, whisking constantly.  Bring to a boil and stir until thickened, then remove from heat.  Optional:  add up to a teaspoon of parsley, and/or a pinch of onion or garlic salt.


Cream of celery condensed soup

1 cup Cream of Whatever soup mix
3/4 cup water
1 cup of dehydrated celery, reconstituted (use excess reconstituting water as part of the 3/4 cup water above)
pinch celery seed, celery salt, and parsley

Put the soup mix in a saucepan over medium heat and add the water, whisking constantly.  Bring to a boil and stir until thickened, then remove from heat.  Stir in the celery, celery salt, and parsley.

Cream of mushroom condensed soup

1 cup Cream of Whatever soup mix
1 can mushrooms, 4.5 oz, undrained, plus 1/4 cup water
OR
1/4 cup dehydrated mushrooms rehydrated in 1 cup water
dash onion salt
1-2 drops Kitchen Bouquet, optional

Put the soup mix in a saucepan over medium heat and stir in liquids, whisking constantly.  Bring to a boil and stir until thickened, then remove from heat.  Stir in the mushrooms, onion salt, and Kitchen Bouquet. 

Cream of tomato soup (this is a recipe for the soup, not the condensed can substitute)

1 cup Cream of Whatever soup mix
1 cup water
2 cans (8-ounce) tomato sauce
1 teaspoon parsley, optional
dash salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder


Put the soup mix in a saucepan over medium heat and stir in water and tomato sauce, whisking constantly.  Bring to a boil and stir until thickened, and then remove from heat.   Stir in seasonings.

Note that this recipe does not contain any sugar, whereas high fructose corn syrup is the second ingredient in Campbell's cream of tomato condensed soup.  Some people really miss the added sugar; I like the soup better without it.

Some of you will recognize that the Cream of Whatever soup mix is just Magic Mix.  It's true.  I decided to write up a post just on the soup mix, however, because I think the soup mix options get lost when considering all that can be done with Magic Mix.  In addition, there are so many people buying so much canned soup to prepare for uncertainties this fall that canned soups are getting hard to find in some areas.  And some stores are beginning to limit purchases again.  So if you're limited to four cans of soup total, you can pass on the store-bought versions of cream of whatever soups and just buy the others.

Related posts on Magic Mix:
Creamy Chicken Noodle and Cheesy Broccoli Potato Soups 
Magic Mix  
Magic Mix Gravy 
Banana Cream Pie
Magic Mix Beef Stroganoff and Cheeseburger Mac 'n Cheese
Fudgesicles