Corn Chowder

Corn Chowder

I must admit this is really good! Any time you are going to make a soup with corn, add in the cobs; you get a ton of flavour from doing that. This is a hearty stick-to-your-ribs chowder that still has butter and cream but a marginal amount. So while this tastes rich and heavy, you’re not going to feel weighed down after eating it.

Serves 4

1 tbsp butter

1 stalk of celery, sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

2 Cloves of garlic, crushed

5-6 Sprigs of fresh thyme

1 tbsp of flour

2 small/1 medium potato, washed and chopped

3 Ears of corn, kernels removed (or 3 cups of frozen corn)

3 Cups chicken sodium reduced chicken stock

¼ Cup Half & Half Cream

Salt

Pepper

–  In a large pot, with a tight-fitting lid, turn the heat to medium high and add the butter. When the butter has melted, add the onion and celery; season with salt and pepper.

–  Sauté the onion and celery for about 5 minutes, just until the onions are soft and translucent but don’t have any colour.

–  Add the garlic, thyme sprigs and flour.

–  Mix well, stirring constantly for about a minute (this gets rid of the raw flour flavour).

–  Stir in the stock, stirring constantly to ensure there are no lumps.

–  Season with salt and pepper.

–  Add the potatoes and if you’re using fresh corn, add in the stripped cobs.

–  Cover the pot with the lid and turn the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Once the soup comes to a boil, drop the heat to low and let it simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tenders.

–  After the soup has simmered for 20 minutes, remove the corncobs and thyme stems.

–  Add the corn and cream.

–  Let the soup simmer for another 10 minutes, make sure you don’t let it come to a boil.

–  Taste and adjust seasoning.

Notes:

1. There is about a cup of corn per medium sized cob of corn.
2. Feel free to garnish with green onions/scallions, about two sliced should do it.
3. This soup is insanely satisfying at a fraction of the fat and calories.