Corn Chowder

I love corn. I love corn chowder. However, I have not found a corn chowder recipe that I have used more than once.  They either tend to be overly creamy, have no flavor, have too many exotic ingredients, or are too much work. Then, I saw this recipe from My Baking Addiction and knew it would be a good one to try.  I didn't follow her exact recipe, since i didn't have the exact spices, and I chose to leave several elements out, but it turned out to be just what I was looking for! One of the reasons I really liked this soup is that I didn't have to do anything to the corn before adding it other than cutting it off the cob.

Note: If you like bacon in your soup, you should definitely use the original recipe.  I don't really like the smell of bacon grease when I cook it, and in fact I'm not really big on eating it either, so I modified my soup.  I know it is an ingredient that people are big on right now, so I don't want to keep you from using it if bacon makes you happy. :)  I also only used 1 cup of cream instead of 2, and only 1 potato, I liked the thinness of the soup (especially for a summer soup), but both could be added to thicken it up a bit more.

Corn Chowder
From: My Baking Addiction


Ingredients:
2-3 Tbs vegetable oil
1 sweet onion, diced
2 carrots peeled and chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/8 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (more if you like some heat)
5-6 cups chicken stock (I actually did 4 cups and 1 cup water)
1 cup heavy cream
1-2 Potatoes, peeled and diced
6-8 ears of corn



Directions:
1. In large pot or dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat.  Add onion, carrots, celery, garlic and cook until the veggies are soft (8-10 min). 

2.  Dust vegetables with flour, chili powder, smoked paprika, thyme, and crushed red pepper flakes; stir to coat well.  Cook vegetables, flour, and seasoning for 2 minutes; stir frequently

3. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Add the cream and potatoes, bring to a rapid boil.  Allow soup to boil hard for about 7 minutes, until the potatoes break down.  This process will help thicken the soup.

4.  Cut the corn kernels off the cobs and add to the soup.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer until the corn is soft and  about 10-12 minutes.

5.  Stir in parsley and ladle soup into bowls.  Garnish with green onions if desired.

Additional Notes: Optional ingredients that I did not add but might try next time I make the soup
2 cups cooked and shredded chicken from a rotisserie chicken
green onions, sliced for garnish (I forgot to buy these, so we didn't use them)