HELOISE Fat-free base is recipe for delicious soup

Dear Heloise: I would love the recipe for the dry soup mix for cream soups. It was in one of your hints in our daily paper. I saved it, but I guess it was thrown out with the papers. Jane W., via e-mail
Not to worry, it's worth reprinting. This popular cream-soup base is very easy to put together and is the foundation for many yummy cream soups!
Add your own main ingredient (chicken, broccoli, mushrooms, celery), and you'll have a delicious cream soup for lots less than the store brand.
FYI: This base is fat-free, and the final fat content will depend on what you add to it.
To make, mix together the following (the amounts given are for one batch). Store in an airtight container:
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried onion flakes
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
1 cup nonfat dried milk powder
To make a soup, put the mixture in a large saucepan and add 2 cups of cold water. Cook on medium heat and stir continuously until the mixture thickens. To the thickened mixture add the main ingredient and let the soup cook a few minutes longer.
One recipe will make about 3 to 5 cups, depending on what you add to it.
Want more soup recipes? Then order my soup pamphlet, Heloise's Spectacular Soups. This six-page pamphlet is filled with soup recipes, soup facts and so much more. To receive a copy, send $4 and a self-addressed, stamped (60 cents), long envelope to: Heloise/Soups, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5001. Hint: If a soup is too thin, just add about 1/4 cup of uncooked oatmeal to it -- it should thicken up quite nicely. Heloise
Dear Heloise: My hint is to put an address-label sticker on small appliances before taking them in for repairs. I recently had to have my computer printer tuned up, and I didn't want it to get mixed up with others like it. I put a sticker on the top, and the staff at the office-supply place was very impressed.
I also use the stickers on home-canned goods. That way, I have a better chance of getting the jars back. Fredericka DeBerry, Kenney, Texas
Dear Heloise: Purchasing a meal at a drive-through window can be frustrating when you drive away and realize the attendant forgot to include a straw for your beverage.
I have solved the problem by carrying a supply of straws in an inexpensive travel toothbrush holder, which can be found in drug and grocery stores. Marilyn Shaffer, DuBois, Pa.
Dear Heloise: I was trying to find a way to separate the crackers from the crumbs. I knew that a colander would not have big-enough holes, so I used my cookie wire rack. I placed the rack over the sink (it fit perfectly), and I poured the crackers on the rack. The crumbs went into the sink, and I was left with whole crackers. Beth Brenton, LaVergne, Tenn.
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