The Old-School Fruity Campbell's Soups We Wish Would Return

Growing up, there was always Campbell's condensed soup in our pantry. Chicken noodle and tomato were staples for quick lunches, with the occasional can of cream of mushroom soup making an appearance for Thanksgiving's ubiquitous green bean casserole. But I'm certain there were never any cans of Campbell's fruit soups in the house.

It's unclear how long the fruit soups were available, and what led to their production halt, but we can learn some information from an advertisement found in a 1959 edition of Tacoma, Washington's The News Tribune. Campbell's made three flavors of fruit soup: Orange with pieces of apricot and white grapes, Prune with oranges and apricots, and Black Cherry with burgundy wine. They were condensed soups, meant to be combined with a can of water, and served either hot or cold, for any meal of the day. The company claimed that the soups were excellent poured over cereal, cottage cheese, ice cream, and puddings, and that they could be made into sauces to liven up chicken, pork, and French toast. A listing on eBay for a $400 empty can of Black Cherry soup gives a bit more info. The ingredient list is refreshingly simple, containing just sweet cherries, sugar, lemon juice, water, burgundy wine, and spice — along with a recipe for Spiced Cherry Salad.

These retro soups may sound unusual, but would probably make some pretty tasty treats, especially if you put them in the hands of some creative social media food influencers. Should they ever make a comeback, I'd pay attention, although I'm not sure I'd ever want to eat a bowl of hot prune soup for lunch.

You can find recipes for fruit-based soups all over the internet. Many are meant to be enjoyed cold and for dessert, but some chilled fruit soups would make excellent additions to lunch or brunch, especially on warm days. The Spanish cold soup, gazpacho, can easily be sweetened with melons, peaches, cherries, plums, mangos, or apricots. While many gazpachos are pureed until smooth, I love the idea of leaving some chunks of fresh fruit behind, which sort of mimics what Campbell's did by adding fruit pieces to its Orange and Prune soups.

Meggyleves, or hideg meggyleves, is a traditional cold Hungarian soup made from sour cherries, sugar, lemon juice, and sour cream or yogurt. Its pink color gives major Barbiecore vibes, sort of like José Andrés' favorite childhood cake. Søtsuppe is a Norwegian soup that's often eaten during holidays and other celebrations. Sweetened with lots of dried fruit, including prunes, raisins, apples, and apricots, it can also be eaten hot or cold. 

As for orange soup, there is apelsinsoppa from Sweden as well as a similar recipe for Danish appelsinsuppe. Both are made with fresh orange juice, garnished with fresh orange, and flavored with warm spices. We don't know if Campbell's took its fruit soup inspiration from any of these international dishes, but we do know that plenty of people around the world enjoy a little fruit in their soup.