What do you do when you revisit a childhood recipe, hoping to recreate that memory of taste from the pages of Betty Crocker or your mother's church cookbook, and find, to your chagrin, that it calls for a can of condensed cream of whatever soup? You don't want the salt, or the mysterious chemical ingredients. But you don't want to give up on that recipe!

The good news is that it's not difficult to recreate those cream of... soups in your own kitchen. In fact, it takes little more than some flour, butter, and broth. And it seriously will not take much more time than opening up a can. That perfect retro casserole is on its way - just a little lighter and more in step with the times.

Here's a recipe for cream of chicken soup, one of the more common condensed soup varieties. To make cream of anything else, just substitute the broth for another type. For cream of mushroom, cook some mushrooms down in the butter, then add the flour and some cream.

Cream of Chicken Condensed Soup
makes a little over a cup, equivalent to one can of soup

3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons white flour
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup milk
Salt and pepper

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat then add the flour. Cook, stirring rapidly, until the mixture is thick.

Add the chicken stock and whisk until smooth, then add the milk. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until thickened. Remove from the heat and add salt and pepper to taste.

This will keep for a couple days in the fridge, but it's best to use it the day you make it.