Alright, so the other day, I was looking at this bunch of celery in the fridge. You know how it is, you buy it for one thing, and then it just sits there, judging you. I thought, “Nope, not today, celery. You’re getting used.” And then it hit me – cream of celery soup. But I wanted to make it a bit more, you know, hearty. So, macaroni it was!
Getting All The Bits Together
First things first, I had to gather my supplies. It wasn’t anything fancy, just the basics. I grabbed:
- That big bunch of celery, obviously. Probably about 5 or 6 stalks.
- An onion. Just a regular yellow one.
- Some butter. About a couple of tablespoons, I guess.
- Flour, also a couple of tablespoons. This is for thickening, you know.
- Milk. I used whole milk ’cause that’s what I had. Maybe two cups? Three? I kind of eyeballed it.
- Some chicken broth. A carton of it.
- Salt and pepper. Gotta have those.
- And of course, the macaroni! Just some elbow macaroni, about a cup, uncooked.
I wasn’t super precise with measurements. I cook like I live – a bit chaotic but it usually works out. Usually.
The Chopping and Sautéing Drama
So, I started by washing and chopping the celery. Man, I really dislike chopping celery sometimes. All those strings! I tried to get most of them off. Then I chopped the onion. Tears were shed, as always. No biggie.
I got my big soup pot out, melted the butter in it. Once it was all foamy, I threw in the chopped celery and onion. I let that cook for a bit, stirring it around until the onions were kinda soft and see-through, maybe like 7-8 minutes. The kitchen started smelling pretty good at this point, which is always a good sign.
Making it Soupy and Creamy
Okay, this is where you gotta pay a little attention. I sprinkled the flour over the cooked veggies and stirred it like crazy for a minute or two. You want to cook out that raw flour taste. Then, I slowly, and I mean slowly, started pouring in the chicken broth, whisking all the time. If you dump it all in at once, you get lumps. Nobody wants lumpy soup. Learned that the hard way a long time ago.
Once all the broth was in and it was smooth, I brought it to a simmer. Let it bubble away gently for about 15 minutes, so the celery got really tender. Then came the milk. Poured that in, stirred it up, and let it heat through but not boil. Boiling milk in soup can make it do weird things.
At this point, I seasoned it with salt and pepper. Tasted it. Added more salt. Tasted again. You know the drill.
Now, some people like to blend their cream of celery soup to make it super smooth. I sometimes do, sometimes don’t. This time, I was feeling a bit lazy, and I like some texture, so I just left it as is, with the bits of celery. If you want it smooth, an immersion blender is your best friend here. Or carefully transfer it to a regular blender.
The Macaroni Phase!
While the soup was doing its thing, I cooked the macaroni in a separate pot. Just followed the package directions – boil water, add salt, add pasta, cook till al dente. Drained it well.
Once the soup was seasoned and tasting good, I just stirred the cooked macaroni right into the pot. Let it all hang out together for a few minutes so the flavors could mingle.
The Grand Finale (Or, You Know, Dinner)
And that was pretty much it! I ladled it into bowls. It was surprisingly good. The creamy soup, the tender celery, and then the chewy macaroni – it just worked. It made the soup feel more like a full meal, which was exactly what I was going for. Not too fancy, just good, comforting food.
It wasn’t a life-changing culinary masterpiece or anything, but it was a solid success for a weeknight dinner. Got rid of that celery, too. Mission accomplished. And the macaroni? Definitely a good call. Made it way more interesting than plain old celery soup. Would I make it again? Yeah, probably. It’s easy enough and pretty satisfying, especially when it’s a bit chilly out.
