Hi, this looks good and really simple. Unfortunately I'm based in the UK and we don't have Philadelphia Cooking Creme (or at least not as far as I know). Would ordinary Philadelphia cream cheese work or should I try using half quantity cream cheese & half quantity cream or creme fraiche?

I normally use cream of mushroom for my stroganoff but did not know I could use cream cheese. I think I will try that, it sound yummy.

I am in LOVE with the cooking cremes! It's nice to have a simple food to make our GF food fast. I especially love the pot pie recipe on the container, I just use leftover chicken, and make Garlic Cheddar bisquits seperately with Pamalas. Thanks for the great recipes! My family has enjoyed everyone I've tried and I love how easy it is to make something in the crockpot!

Perfect! I'm so glad that you posted this, because we have the same creme cheese in the fridge, and I was wondering what I was going to do with it!
I've had you on my blogroll for a while. I LOVE my slowcooker and your recipes.
Have a great week!

I used the Garlic flavored one in my Quickie Beef Stroganoff recipe (not a slow cooker one) and it was very good.

Question...I thought that putting a dairy product like the Philly sauce in a slow cooker and cooking it for several hours would cause it to curdle. So I assume yours didn't, is that so?

If only the hubby liked mushrooms... ugh! Looks great to me!

Hi Elaine, I think using a mixture of creme fraiche and reg cream cheese would provide the best texture. To get the quite pronounced garlic flavor you'll need to put in a bunch of fresh chopped garlic or jarred garlic --2 tablespoons or so.

Hi Barb, it didn't separate on me! There were a few non-melty lumps, but a quick stir got rid of everything. I have had dairy separate in the past due to slow and low cooking, but stirring usually remedies it quickly.

Hi Stephanie- I'm a HUGE FAN & I've been following you since the original challenge. LOVE your story! S I have been shredding zuchini squash on the fine side of grater & 'sneaking' into several of my crockpot recipes when I feel like the dish is 'meat heavy'. My son & hubby who both think they HATE squash have been gobbling it up in everything from meatloaf to marinara. It does add quite a bit of liquid to meatloaf, but I just drain it & it leaves it very moist.

Thanks so much for blogging about this! Who knew a slow cooker could do so much? Anyhow, I'm having a bit of trouble accessing your "index" page - actually, I can get to the page just fine but alphabetically speaking, it only goes through the "c's". Do I have to subscribe somehow to something?

How does this Phil Cream stuff compare to regular cream cheese? In general I don't like buying "specialty" flavoured products. Thanks

I've Googled and read numerous blog posts, but I still don't get what Philly's Cooking Creme is. Is it cream cheese with flavorings mixed in? Is it a frugal mom's creme fraiche? I definitely like the idea of putting a cream-product in at the start of cooking. My slowcooker stroganoff recipe calls for adding sour cream in the last hour, which means that dinner isn't ready when I walk in the door which is simply tragic! ;)

The list of ingredients on these cooking creams is no better than the list of ingredients on the cream of something soups. I'm disappointed that you are turning to this. I realize you are getting paid to do it, but it seems like you are compromising your standards for money. Before this you seemed to care about what you put in front of your family. Just bc your children don't have an immediate negative reaction the way they do with gluten doesn't mean this garbage isn't hurting them. And worse, you are encouraging others to do it. Sure, some things like soy sauce you can't replicate at home, but we can find better versions of them. There is no need to use these cooking creams. Stroganoff has been made for generations without it. I am not against you making money for providing us all with great recipes, but I am against you compromising your standards and your readers' health to do it. People eat what you recommend, and if you say this is ok, they will believe it. You have a responsibility, and you signed up for it.

Stephanie, I don't mind the compensated blog posts, in fact I'm really glad to see the new recipes and be introduced to this product (you can tell the Philly people it's working). Before I got diagnosed with celiac I used to make a chicken and dumplings dish at Let's Dish that my family loved, I tried to duplicate it at home but it called for a cup of "culinary cream" and I didn't know what to substitute in it's place. I suspect that the Philadelphia Cooking Creme is very similar and will be excited to try it; especially since someone just told me how great the GF bisquick is. Thanks for posting this recipe, I love the blog and your recipes and all the work that you do.

April, she owes you nothing. This is her blog.

Hmmmm, I wonder how I could do a dairy/soy free version for my family? This looks and sounds delish!

Stephanie, I have been reading your blog for years and I really enjoy it. It doesn't bother me at all that you do compensated posts. We live in America where we use products like this because of their convienience. I wouldn't call them "garbage."

I know writing a blog is a lot of work, so I'm glad you are getting paid. And I am happy to know more about this product, sincerely.


Keep up the good work!

I've been looking for the Cooking Creme in my area but haven't seen it yet. I love been stroganoff so once I find the Creme I'll have to try this.

I don't mind compensated posts at all. I tried this recipe tonight, and it was delicious. It did separate on me, but I just stirred it again before dishing it up, and it was fine. I put in a lot of mushrooms, and it was a little on the runny side, but still very good.

I love your blog, and was thinking today while throwing this together that you've really changed the way I make dinner. I used to do more skillet and oven meals, but now, I use my crock pot more than anything else. Thank you!!!

Never going to make everyone happy.. :)
However, this looks great. I've seen the creams in the store but hadn't thought of anything to use them for. This, however sounds wonderful. My family loves stroganoff, but since I've been diagnosed with GI I've worried that it might be something I wouldn't be able to make (or at least not be able to eat with them.) This is definitely going on the menu at our house.
(maybe even with skillet potatoes instead of pasta once in a while...)

I've never made beef strog, but I'm going to try it this very week!

General question: when using a massive crockpot (which is all I have at the moment) for a small/average recipe, can I put a smaller pyrex dish inside the crock? Should I put a lid on the pyrex or not? Does it sit right on the bottom of the crock or should I put something under it? Line the crock with foil in case there is overflow from the pyrex? Could I possibly fit more questions into this paragraph? ;)

Thanks, Steph!!

Umm, I normally would not use this product because it sounds kind of gross to me, but you've tempted me to at least think about giving it a try, which is the point, no? I see nothing wrong with that, please don't allow other's (jealousy?) to make you feel guilty. I've been a faithful reader for years and years and see absolutely nothing wrong with you accepting paid posts, as long as they're acknowledged which you always do. I'm counting on you to never lie about liking/not liking a product and I feel that trust is well placed.

As far as your standards about what you feed your children, get real. Who can feed their family the absolutely perfect meal 24/7? Things happen. Sometimes you just want the quick, easy, go-to dinner. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that. I really, really hope that commenter did not make you feel bad.

i made this on the weekend for a party, actually we had a whole variety of crockpot meals but the beef stroganoff was the favourite of the night and we had no left overs from a large oval crockpot. I could only get plain philly cooking cream (in NZ) but it was still simple and delisious, i will be making this again for sure, thanks.

Let me say right off the bat, I love the philadelphia cooking creams. Let me also say that I rarely read the comments of others. But I was so excited to see you were using something that I just purchased and was wonderng about how to use ... that I skimmed through these comments

I guess I am kind of appalled that someone would be upset that you are using this product (even if you are being compensated). Afterall, it is no different than using catsup, or a soup provided by another company rather than making it yourself from scratch. And crock pot cooking is all about easy and speed of preparation as well as good taste in the end product. These cooking creams fit right in with that way of cooking.

I also know that you can't please everyone. This reader is pleased. Great Job

Tried this out yesterday and it was BAD. Really, really BAD. Sorry, but it definitely needs more than just a container of the cooking creme.
I liked the recipe because it seemed so simple, but it just did not work. No one could eat it so we had to throw it out. Complete waste of money.

Ok, I tried this once everyone was back around. Didn't go over well. We found it rather bland. So far, I'm the only one eating it, and that's just cuz I'm stubborn. Have decided to freeze it for a while then bring it back and try doctoring it some. We added onions and mushrooms, but it just didn't work out well for us. Is a good base though, maybe it will come back as the base for a shepherd's pie or stew or something..

I made this and it can be a bit bland but I added a little sour cream before serving and a dash of salt and it made a big difference. Simple and filling!