Last night I prepared "King" Ranch Casserole for dinner, however have decided to call my particular recipe "Queen" Ranch because of the extra homemade goodness I added to this classic dish. I grew up on "cream of mushroom" soup, however never really consumed it as a soup, but rather in casseroles to add creaminess. Instead of using canned cream of mushroom glop, I decided to prepare my own very simple, but very delicious and fragrant cream of mushroom soup from scratch.
Soup:
3 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup of flour
2cups of milk
1 lb raw mushrooms
1 tablespoon of garlic
1 sprig of rosemary
salt/pepper
splash of white wine
To prepare the soup, I first melted the butter in a pot, once the butter was completely melted I added the garlic and coarsely chopped mushrooms until tender. At this point, I added a splash of white wine for a layer of flavor then added the flour to make a roux. I slowly added the milk, whisking the mix until incorporated. Add salt/pepper to taste, and a sprig of rosemary (whole) Simmer for 10 minutes and done. The soup was a nice consistency. I also added the juice from the roasted chicken I had baking in the oven since the "original" recipe calls for 1 can of cream of mushroom and 1 can of cream of chicken (soups). My Queen Ranch Casserole turned out delicious...probably the best casserole I've ever had.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with a King Ranch Casserole the ingredients are as follows:
corn tortillas
shredded chicken
cheese (I use white american, sharp yellow cheddar and gruyere)
1 can of rotel
sauteed onions and peppers
cans of cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup are optional, I didn't use either.
(if you would like my recipe, I'll be happy to send it to you)
