• Basic White Sauce
• For a thin sauce, use the first #amount, for Medium the 2nd, for Medium-Thick the third, and for Thick the 4th. Does that make sense?
• Melt in heavy saucepan:
• butter/margarine 1T for thin 2T for medium 3T for medium-thick 4T for thick

1. Blend in, cooking and stirring until bubby:
2. flour 1T for thin 2T for medium 3T for medium-thick 4T for thick
3. salt 1/4 tsp (no matter what consistency)
4. Using a wire whisk to prevent lumps, stir in
5. milk, stock, or combination 1 cup (no matter which consistency)
6. Cook just until smooth and thickened. Makes slightly over 1 cup. Medium-thick compares to undiluted condensed soups and makes approx. the same amount contained in one 10-oz can.
7. Options:
8. Cheese Sauce: add 1/2 c. grated nippy cheese and 1/4 tsp dry mustard
9. Tomato Sauce: use tomato juice as liquid, add dash each of garlic salt, onion salt, basil, oregano
10. Mushroom sauce: saute 1/4 c. chopped mushrooms and 1 T finely chopped onion in margarine before adding flour
11. Chicken Sauce: use chicken broth or buillon as half the liquid. Add 1/4 t. poultry seasoning or sage and diced cooked chicken, if available.
12. Vary flavor with the following (or whatever you can think of):
13. curry powder
14. garlic, onion, or celery salt
15. sauted onions, celery or mushrooms
16. grated nutmeg
17. lemon juice
18. worcestershire sauce
19. chili powder
20. chopped or blended vegetables
21. chopped parsley
22. chopped chives
23. chopped hard-cooked eggs
24. Sky's the limit!

The part of me that loves to cook from scratch (though I'm a little cheap and lazy) dislikes the idea of cooking with cans of soup. It's not any cheaper and only barely faster. So here's a substitute that's cost-efficient and easy. I learned this from a great cookbook called "The More With Less Cookbook." Just make a 5-minute white sauce with a few ingredients and a wire whisk. You can change the flavor infinitely with different herbs, seasonings, cheeses, broths and vegetables.