Wanted: Your culinary creativity

Several weeks ago, Hyunsuk asked me what kind of groceries I wanted before making a trip to Costco. One of my friends commented the other day that Koreans really do their own food better than any other country's food, which is why my list of items to buy at the store has become shorter and shorter. It's better to eat a delicious Korean meal than an American style meal that tastes crappy. The memo I wrote had about four items on it: spaghetti sauce, bread (with a decent fiber amount,) chicken nuggets, and canned soup. I told Hyunsuk that sometimes in the winter I liked to eat a simple soup with crackers. Remembering the breakfast chowder a few months ago, I thought surely Campbell's had an adequate variety of soups, and I left it that.

My host mom came home with about a 24-unit box of Cream of Mushroom. Not exactly what I had in mind. But an innocent mistake.

I tried to explain that Cream of Mushroom soup was actually more of an ingredient for cooking casseroles and dishes in the states, but not usually eaten on it's own. Still, I had to try it, right? She bought so much of it. And surely, somewhere along the line, someone thought Cream of Mushroom soup was a good idea on it's own. Maybe some of you who are reading even enjoy it. I don't know. Needless to say, it wasn't my thing. It felt dipping saltine crackers in an even more salty gravy.

One thing I really appreciate about my host mom is she doesn't like to waste food. She even made use of the less than tasty, over-preserved Costco colby jack cheese by coupling it with other ingredients for kimbob rolls. Now, she wants to find a solution for the soup.

So this post isn't about the story per se as much as it is a request for your creative cooking concoctions. Here's the catch: we don't have an oven...which pretty much rules out 80 percent of the recipes that call for cream of mushroom soup. But you're a smart bunch out there. (Aunt Janet, maybe you have some ideas.) What might we do with all this Cream of Mushroom soup?