Thanksgiving is one of those holidays where a lot of people go all out and make several things from scratch, which is why today, I am sharing my simple homemade cream soup recipe to make your Green Bean Casserole with.
Green bean casserole is one of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving dinner, and honestly one of the only ways I like to eat green beans! Haha.
I opted to still use the french fried onions for this recipe, but I will include an option for homemade breaded and baked onion strings. Although I like homemade everything on Thanksgiving, I didn’t want to spend 30 minutes baking onions just for the top of this casserole, but it’s totally up to you. If you are in charge of only bringing this casserole to your family dinner, then by all means, go for the homemade onions!
Is green bean casserole a must have for your Thanksgiving dinner? Here’s my recipe:
NO CREAM SOUP Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 (14.5 oz) cans green beans
- 5 Tbsp butter
- 3 Tbsp flour
- 3/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- 3/4 cup milk
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 (3 oz) pkg French's French Fried Onions (or Alton Brown has a homemade version)
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk until the mixture becomes fragrant and nutty, about 1 minute.
- Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and milk.
- Bring mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, until thickened. Season with salt and pepper. Drain the liquid from the cans of green beans and add them to the cream sauce.
- Pour beans and sauce into a lightly greased 13x9-inch baking dish. Sprinkle the top with French fried onions, and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes, until bubbling in the center and heated through.
Recipe Notes
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Janet says
November 2, 2014 at 9:08 AMI would make this a vegetarian recipe so my daughter would eat it. Mushrooms would be a good addition too. Thanks for this recipe. Pinned :0
Amber says
November 3, 2014 at 9:01 AMThis recipe is really versatile! Definitely make it how you like it! We just typically have chicken broth on hand over vegetable broth and my family doesn’t like mushrooms, but feel free to sauté some up and throw them in there!
Jen @ Baked by an Introvert says
November 3, 2014 at 6:52 AMI love that you didn’t use the gross condensed soup in your recipe. This casserole is delicious and healthy. It’s simply perfect, Amber!
Amber says
November 3, 2014 at 9:02 AMHomemade tastes better and doesn’t take long to whip up anyway 😉 Thanks Jen!
[email protected] says
November 3, 2014 at 12:45 PMI can’t stand green bean casseroles that call for condensed soup! My brother was just telling me the other day that I should make a green bean casserole for TG this year and I think I just found the one! Can’t wait to try this, Amber. 🙂
Amber says
November 5, 2014 at 7:07 AMYou totally should! Enjoy!
Kelly - Life Made Sweeter says
November 3, 2014 at 2:27 PMLove that you used homemade soup in your green bean casserole. It looks so delicious and I’ll bet it tastes super amazing! Pinning 🙂
Amber says
November 5, 2014 at 7:08 AMYeah, it’s nice to have that option if you are worried about the chemicals in the cans.
Teresa says
November 4, 2014 at 5:47 PMLove that this is not made with canned soups. Looks great.
Amber says
November 5, 2014 at 7:13 AMWe love the homemade sauce! Thanks Teresa!
Yvonne [Tried and Tasty] says
November 10, 2014 at 10:08 AMNo cream soup?? Yes!!! I have gotten away from using canned soups in my cooking and love when I find a recipe that doesn’t use it – yay!
Amber says
November 11, 2014 at 8:11 AMI’m trying to lean towards only homemade cream soups, but sometimes, I have to whip out a can. I will admit homemade soup tastes WAY better though!
Halie says
December 12, 2014 at 6:49 PMThis is the easiest DIY cream of soup substitue I’ve found! I’m going to try it for family dinner tomorrow with some fresh green beans from the farmers market. Thanks for sharing!!
Amber says
December 13, 2014 at 9:01 AMThanks Halie! I hope you enjoy it!
Jessica says
December 21, 2014 at 10:49 PMCan this be made the day before and refrigerated overnight and reheated?
Amber says
December 22, 2014 at 7:58 AMI would make your cream soup, let it cool and then toss it with your green beans and layer the onions on top. Then refrigerate overnight and bake until heated through. That way your beans don’t get mushy.
Jenny says
November 12, 2015 at 8:18 PMHave you tried this recipe in a Crock pot before?
Amber says
November 16, 2015 at 8:30 AMYou would still have to prepare the sauce on the stovetop, but you can throw it in the crockpot to heat through. I would wait to put the french fried onions on until just before serving, or they may go soggy with the moisture inside the crockpot.
Donna says
November 17, 2015 at 8:54 AMcan you use broccoli flowerets instead of green beans?
Amber says
November 18, 2015 at 10:39 AMI think that would be okay. It might take slightly longer (5 to 10 minutes?). Just use a fork to tell how done the broccoli is and bake it to your personal preference.
Susan Kinyon says
November 22, 2015 at 5:10 AMHave been making a white sauce for years. Cannot stand canned soups of any kind. I do, however, add slices mushrooms, dried red peppers and other spices (dill on top) to jazz up the flavor. Never could understand the hype over the canned greenbean casserole – because it was easy? Ho hum in my opinion. Too salty and everyone has been making it since the 1960’s!
Sabrina says
November 25, 2015 at 8:28 PMmade this tonight for our Thanksgiving dinner (we ate ours tonight so we could relax tomorrow) it was not as creamy as soup but lighter and we enjoyed it! super easy to make the sauce too!
Amber says
November 29, 2015 at 11:05 AMAwesome! Thanks for your review Sabrina!
Wayne Thomason says
November 27, 2015 at 3:53 PMI had guests for Thanksgiving this year who are allergic to mushrooms. This was the perfect recipe for my guests! I made only a couple of minor changes, First of all for convenience of measurement, I only used a half stick of butter (4 TBSP) instead of the 5 Tablespoons in the recipe. The second change was to use a 6 oz package of french fried onions instead of a 3 oz package. Half went into the casserole and the other half topped it after the initial baking period.
The green beans almost out-shined the turkey (almost, but not quite).
Amber says
November 29, 2015 at 11:04 AMI’m all for extra french fried onions! Glad you had a successful dinner!
Mary Ann says
November 15, 2016 at 11:09 AMWe make this with Almond Milk and “safe” margarine for our milk allergy family member. Such a simple change, so she can eat it, and no one knows the difference! It tastes GREAT! Thanks for sharing, Amber.
Tawnie Shea says
November 19, 2016 at 11:42 PMmy husband is allergic to Mushrooms so happy that you have a version without it thank you! 🙂
Amber says
November 20, 2016 at 6:24 AMGlad I could help! Enjoy!
Monica Hopp says
November 20, 2016 at 1:14 PMCould you use frozen green beans? Or is it best to used canned?
Amber says
November 20, 2016 at 2:53 PMYou can definitely use frozen green beans, just boil or steam them first.
Brianna says
February 7, 2017 at 9:20 AMIs this ok to refrigerate left overs and eat the next day or will it be to soggy?
Amber says
February 7, 2017 at 10:48 AMThe French fried onions go a little soggy, but I still enjoy the leftovers. It’s up to your personal preference. You can even save some extra French fried onions if you want to top your leftovers.
oneintercessor says
November 18, 2017 at 10:00 PMMy daughter is allergic to canned condensed soup suddenly so I was just looking for a recipe. This is what I’d planned to do, so it makes me feel more confident moving forward. Thank you!
Amber says
November 19, 2017 at 9:34 AMYou’re welcome! Enjoy!
Tami says
November 20, 2017 at 7:49 AMIf I use frozen green beans how much do you suggest?
Amber says
November 20, 2017 at 8:28 AMI would use around 5 cups. So about 16oz of frozen green beans.
Isabel M says
December 5, 2017 at 5:40 PMWhen I made it this was by far the best one I’ve tasted I don’t like mushrooms nor the whole condensed soup, this was honestly soooo yummy see making again.
Amber says
December 5, 2017 at 6:05 PMSo glad to hear it! Thanks for your comment Isabel!
Amy says
April 22, 2018 at 5:56 PMMade it tonight; loved it, thanks!
Amber says
April 22, 2018 at 9:20 PMFantastic! Thanks for your comment Amy!
Jill says
November 14, 2018 at 1:49 PMCan i use fresh green beans, if I blanch them first?
Amber Brady says
November 14, 2018 at 7:01 PMYou can absolutely use fresh green beans. I would boil them for 6-7 minutes, then make the sauce and bake it altogether.