Stop – don’t do it!
Step away from that friendly can o’ condensed soup and check out this kinda wicked cool substitute – made from just butter, flour, tomato juice, and some spices, and ready in not much more time than it’ll take you to find the can opener.
I’ve posted another, dairy free, tomato soup substitute, but I’m really liking this version, from home-ec101.com, so bring on the butter and let’s get started.
INGREDIENTS*
•3 tbsp butter
•3 tbsp flour
•1 cup tomato juice – I used some spicy veggie juice I had in the fridge
•1/8 tsp onion powder
•1/8 tsp garlic powder
•1/8 tsp sugar
•1/4 tsp dried basil
•1/4 tsp dried parsley
•1/4 tsp Aleppo pepper
•1/2 tsp dried oregano
*Adjust seasonings to your own preferences; this mixture included some of my favorites for tomato soup, but feel free to add and/or subtract as you like, one of the added advantages of making it yourself.
Note: tomato and/or veggie juices have a fair amount of salt in them to begin with, so you’ll really not be needing to add any here.
Melt the butter in a large pan over moderate heat, then whisk in the flour to blend.
Continue stirring until the mixture is well blended and turns a deep, golden brown.
Add the juice, a tablespoon or so at a time, whisking until you have a smooth, lump-free mixture.
Reduce the heat to low, add the remaining juice and the seasonings, then stir until the mixture thickens.
Nice, pretty fast ‘condensed’ tomato soup.
Use just as it is in any recipe you like, or consider adding a cup or so of milk or cream, gently warming, and serving for lunch or dinner – it’s hard to pass up a bowl of tomato soup with a grilled cheese sammich.
If you like the sound of this recipe, but aren’t in need of a tomato soup substitute, check out these options for cream of celery and cream of ‘shroom soup – you’ll never look at the soup aisle in your local market the same.