Cream of Asparagus Soup

Recipe No. 534 from the U.S. Army’s WWII cookbook — Soups. Quantities are exactly as printed, for 100 servings; a scaled-down 8-serving version is in the notes.

Ingredients

• Beef stock — 1¾ gallons (7 No. 56 dippers)
• Asparagus — 4 No. 10 cans
• Onions, chopped — 8 ounces (½ No. 56 dipper)
• Fat, melted — 1 pound (½ No. 56 dipper)
• Flour, sifted — 1 pound (1 No. 56 dipper)
• Salt — 2 ounces (4 mess kit spoons)
• Pepper — (⅙ mess kit spoon)
• Nutmeg — (⅙ mess kit spoon)
• Milk, evaporated, heated — 12 — 14½-ounce cans

Directions

Key ingredients

Evaporated Milk

1. Prepare beef stock (recipe No. 519).
2. Mix beef stock and asparagus including liquid from the can; heat to boiling point.*
3. Fry onions in melted fat until tender. Add flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg; stir until smooth.
4. Add onion mixture slowly to hot milk; mix thoroughly. Heat to boiling point; reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes or until soup is slightly thick, stirring constantly.
5. Mix asparagus and milk mixtures just before serving.

Notes

SCALED TO 8 SERVINGS (the original is ÷12.5): Beef stock — 2¼ cups Asparagus — 1 qt Onions, chopped — ⅔ oz Fat, melted — 1¼ oz Flour, sifted — 1¼ oz Salt — about 1 tsp Pepper — scale to taste ((⅙ mess kit spoon)) Nutmeg — scale to taste ((⅙ mess kit spoon)) Milk, evaporated, heated — 1 can(s) (14½ oz)

Asparagus mixture may be rubbed through a sieve if desired.

— TM 10-412, Army Recipes (War Department, 15 August 1944), recipe No. 534, Soups. Army measures: 1 No. 56 dipper = 1 qt; 1 No. 55 dipper = 1¾ qt; 1 mess kit cup = 1½ pints.