Instructions: Fat-Free Cream Soup Substitute is Quick & Convenient WRAL-TV

Convenience foods make preparing meals quick and easy. Take cream soup for example. Served alone, its delicious, hearty and filling. Its also an important ingredient in other recipes like casseroles. But it probably comes as no surprise that a little can of cream soup is filled with fat. One 16 ounce can of the soup has the equivalent of 3 teaspoons of fat. You can reduce the amount of fat in cream soup by making your own. With a few ingredients, you can create a mix from which you can prepare all kinds of cream-based foods, including soups and gravies. And you can have a low-fat substitute for cream in casseroles. Heres how to make it.

If youre trimming sodium from your diet, use low sodium bouillon granules. They add flavor without adding salt.

Begin with 2 cups of non-fat dry milk. Add 3/4 cup cornstarch. Then add 1/3 cup chicken bouillon granules. Add 2 tablespoons dried minced onion, 1 teaspoon thyme, 1 teaspoon dried basil and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Mix ingredients well and store in an air tight container until ready to use.

When ready to make the soup, mix 1 1/4 cup of cold water or cold skim milk with 1/3 of the dried mix.

Add 2 tablespoons fat-free buttery spread and cook the mixture, stirring constantly, until it thickens. This amount of soup is equal to 1 can of cream soup.

Use this soup as an ingredient in other recipes or create your own specialty soups by adding your own ingredients: Add corn for a creamy corn chowder
Add tomato sauce for a cream of tomato soup Add diced potatoes for a thick potato soup Add asparagus for a cream of asparagus soup Add broccoli for a cream of broccoli soup Add reduced-fat cheese to create a low-fat cheese sauce

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