Thanks for your input. I have been making soups from chicken stock, and love them. What I don't know how to do is substitute for the condensed soups in recipes. I guess it's mostly a thickener, with a bit of flavor, so maybe just a soup base would work like SqueakyClean said. I have the NT book, but am just now starting to try the recipes. I am glad to hear the soups are good. I just made my first cream cheese tonight!