Homemade Cream of Celery Soup is so much healthier than canned condensed soup. The perfect quick & easy recipe for all of your casseroles! Or enjoy it alone as a light lunch with a fresh slice of homemade bread.
Growing up my family attended many potluck dinners typically held at our church after Sunday services. I loved to socialize with all my friends and of course sample each of the many desserts – after all, I was a kid and was NOT thinking about my waistline or healthy real food choices!
I think I would still enjoy a church potluck… it would just have to be minus the food! And not because I am worried about my waistline, but thinking back to those potlucks, nearly every dish was a casserole.
What is so wrong with a casserole?
NOTHING. I love creamy dishes and layered bakes!
But let’s be honest. The casseroles most people are serving start with canned cream of soups – Yikes!!
On our journey to eating a diet of real food, canned cream of soup had to go away PERMANENTLY! And so many people think when you toss these cans that are full of preservatives and chemicals, you have to say good-bye to so many casseroles.
This is simply NOT the case, because you can make homemade cream soups! This recipe for cream of celery soup is a perfect replacement for canned condensed cream of celery soup (btw, I also have a homemade cream of chicken soup and a homemade cream of mushroom soup!).
You can not only have any casserole you desire, but it will taste a million times better.
And not only that, it will only take a few extra minutes, I promise!
Cream of Celery Soup
Not only is this great recipe a perfect base for all of your casserole favorites, it’s also:
- Quick. This recipe comes together in minutes.
- Easy. Using simple real food ingredients, it doesn’t get any easier.
- Versatile. Use it as a substitute for most other cream soups.
- Healthy. It’s SO much healthier than the canned version.
- Vegan-friendly. Sub out the butter and milk for dairy-free options, like homemade almond milk, and use vegetable stock for a vegan option with the dairy substitutes.
What are the ingredients for homemade cream of celery soup?
- butter
- celery, diced into size of rice grains (you can use a grating disc in your food processor for this)
- flour (all purpose or gluten free)
- salt
- pepper
- celery salt
- milk
- stock (vegetable or chicken)
How to make cream of celery soup
- Melt butter in a heavy bottomed stock pan over medium heat. Add celery, salt, celery salt, and pepper and saute until celery is beginning to soften–about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add flour to pan and stir to coat. Allow to cook for 1 additional minute.
- Add milk and broth, whisking to incorporate flour into liquid. Bring to a boil and whisk well until mixture is quite thick–anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes. Remove soup from heat and enjoy as is, or use in your favorite recipe!
Can I make Cream of Celery Soup gluten free?
Yes, this recipe is easily made gluten free! Just swap out the all-purpose flour for gluten-free flour and you’re good to go!
Can I make cream of celery soup dairy free or vegan?
Yes, just substitute the butter and milk for dairy free options, like homemade almond milk, and use vegetable stock (rather than chicken broth) for vegan with the dairy substitutes.
What is a good substitute for cream of celery soup?
If you are unable to use cream of celery soup, you can always substitute my homemade cream of chicken soup, or my homemade cream of mushroom soup. They will all taste delicious in your favorite recipes, it just depends on which flavor profile you are looking for as a base in your recipe.
Is there a difference between condensed soup and cream of celery soup?
The word ‘condensed’ means it is a soup that is made with a minimal amount of liquid, and generally has a thick texture.
This recipe is rich and creamy, but isn’t really a ‘condensed’ soup like the canned version.
What can I do with homemade cream of celery soup?
You can use it as a base in all of your favorite recipes. Plus, it would be delicious served alone for lunch with a slice of homemade bread for dipping! Use it for the following suggestions and more!
- Soups & Stews
- Gravies and Cream Sauces
- Casseroles like my Easy Green Bean Casserole, or a tuna casserole.
- Pasta Bakes like my Vegetable Pasta Primavera, or my Creamy Butternut Squash Pasta Bake.
- Pot Pies or Shepherd’s Pies would be great options as well!
More Homemade Soup Recipes
- Cream of Chicken Soup
- Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Slow Cooker Mexican Potato Soup
- Garlic White Bean Soup with Kale
- Homemade Tortilla Soup Recipe
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Homemade Cream of Celery Soup is so much healthier than canned condensed soup. The perfect quick & easy recipe for all of your casseroles, or enjoy alone as a light lunch with slice of homemade bread.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 “can” 1x
- Category: Soup & Salad
- Method: Stovetop / whisk
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup stock (vegetable or chicken)
- 1/4 cup celery, diced into size of rice grains (you can use a grating disc in your food processor for this)
- 1/4 cup flour (all purpose or gluten free)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp celery salt
Instructions
- Melt 1/4 cup butter in a heavy bottomed stock pan over medium heat. Add 1/4 cup chopped celery + 1/4 tsp celery salt + 1 tsp sea salt + 1 tsp pepper and saute until celery is beginning to soften, stirring occasionally — about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add 1/4 cup flour to pan and stir to coat. Allow to cook for 1 additional minute.
- Add 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup broth, whisking to incorporate flour and liquid. Bring to a boil and whisk well until mixture is quite thick–anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes. Remove soup from heat and enjoy as is, or use in your favorite recipe!
Keywords: Cream of Celery Soup
I saw the post about making this gluten free, but I don’t use the baking blends. Would glucomannan or collagelatin(by bulletproof) work instead? Or would almond flour work? If so, how much would I use? Ps…I will also be using unsweetened almond milk. I can’t wait to try in one of my favorite recipes from my Mom! Trying to make it as Keto friendly as I can. Thank you!
Hi Kim! I have’t tried either of those items before, so I honestly couldn’t tell you. Could you make your own GF blend? I wouldn’t do ALL almond flour, but maybe some in a blend would work…
Thanks Tiffany. I’ll give it a try and let you know.
How do you cook this cream of chicken with rice when and what kind of rice?
I’m sorry Gail, but this isn’t a recipe for cream of chicken with rice. You can make this “cream of anything” soup and substitute it in for your recipe!
I made 6 recipes of this at once for tater tot casserole and then to have some extra in the freezer and the flavor is great, but it’s quite peppery so be aware.
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Can’t wait to try these! How long would these last in the refrigerater/freezer?
These will last several months in the freezer, and about a week in the fridge.
These look awesome! One question though. One of my favourite casseroles calls for a can of condensed cream of mushroom soup. I don’t add water. How can I make my own condensed so I can still make the casserole?
Here you go Taylor! https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/2017/03/homemade-cream-mushroom-soup/
I’m a Southern girl and have made biscuits and gravy for over 50 years. Imagine my chagrin to discover that a cream soup is just gravy made with different seasonings and diluted to soup consistency with some broth!! I have absolutely got this idea now!!!!
Still, I have tomatoes and basil in my garden so I’m going to make your tomatoes basil soup tonight! When you have a garden you learn to use it while you have it!!
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Ihave celery also so I’ll add a touch of that too.
Oh my gosh, thank you! I have stopped making recipes that call for preserved ingredients and always thought I would experiment with making my own recipes when I had “time”…thanks for doing the experimentation for me!
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I’ve been making my own cream of anything soup for about 40 years now, so this isn’t really a “new” concept. It’s basically the same thing you talk about here, except that I always browned my flour first, otherwise the whole things tastes like raw flour. You can use arrowroot to thicken, as well, but remember that arrowroot will give the whole thing a rather gelantinous mouthfeel, which isn’t bad it’s just different than what you’d expect. When used in a casserole, however, it’s not really noticeable.
I guess I’ve made almost every combo of “anything” soups you can think of (with stuff my family would eat, of course – no eggplant around here!). We eat healthy and are healthy but NO ONE in my family will touch artichoke or eggplant. (;-)
I used to use a DIY dry mix with dehydrated milk, but it wasn’t the same. I am excited to get rid of the cans again and use something that I actually know what is in it. Thank you for sharing!
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You’re very welcome Cara!