Instant Soup Ratings: For Rainy Days, Part 2

Crock pots are my friends.
They fill up my house with the warm aroma of good smells of food that is significantly, nay, magically, not burnt.
Not all of the following soups are designed for crock pots, but being fearless about ruined suppers, I tried them in the crock pot anyway.
One spoon means I wasted my money, but the raccoons were happy, since I tend to dump my mistakes in the woods behind the house. 10 spoons means I could pass the soup off to friends as homemade. That is, unless they get suspicious because supper isn’t burnt.
-3 spoons. Wyler’s Mrs. Grass Hearty Mix Homestyle Beef Stew. This package actually had crock pot directions; but, it’s only fair to mention that I started it in the morning and returned to it 10 hours later, instead of 3 or 4 hours as instructed. Even with the meat I added, this could have been canned soup.
-5 spoons. Cugino’s Baked Burgandy French Onion Soup. Just what you would expect, but not spectacular. The directions also say to top their soup with your croutons and cheese. Of course, everybody knows that the best thing about onion soup is the bread and cheese on top.
-7 spoons. Williams Country Style Soup Mix Louisiana Style Gumbo. Okay, I’m a connoisseur of gumbo and this is good. There is rice in the bag, and while it was pretty thick by dinner, the rice was still recognizable. I topped mine with Tabasco, of course, and it would have been even better with a handful of shrimp thrown in. After I panned another Williams Soup, I wanted to give the brand another chance and I’m glad I did.
-9 spoons. Bean Cuisine Thick as Fog Split Pea Soup. The adults loved this one, but my son switched to pasta. I added turkey sausage. It was great, and would have been even better with a spoonful of sour cream or yogurt on top.
-10 spoons. Turtle Island Just for Joy Southwestern Roasted Corn Chowder. I added a can of corm and 8 oz. of cooked, diced chicken breast. We loved it, even my son.
The good news about the instant soups on this list is that, while my son opted for mac and cheese sometimes, my husband and I were able to enjoy all of them, thus encouraging moderation among the raccoons of our neighborhood which tend to be too fat and sassy anyway.
Just for good measure I included my favorite homemade soup recipe on my blog. While it is not as easy as dinner from an envelope, Veloute Soup is simple, low-fat, delicious, and the creation of a talented fellow East Texan.
Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at http:/checklistcharlie.blogspot.com or cathykrafve@gmail.com.