So it was a Corn Chowder kind of Sunday. The Browns were playing their highly anticipated season opener and it was a picture perfect late Summer/early Fall kind of day. Usually, I only make Corn Chowder once a year. Right now, when the summer corn is at the height of it's freshness and flavor but the cooler weather is starting to creep in. Perfect time for Corn Chowder!
Well, I have a favorite recipe for Corn Chowder.....this isn't it! Don't get me wrong, this recipe is really, really good and my family loved it! I found it on the website How to Feed a Loon. The problem is, I lost the paper copy of my favorite Corn Chowder recipe, which I had also found on line a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, I searched the web and I could not find it again. I'm going to keep searching but I had to postpone my search for now so that I could make another version of chowder before game time.
I found that most corn chowder recipes call for bacon or ham. Anything tasted better with bacon, right? This is usually the case, but for some reason, I feel that the bacon takes over the flavor of the chowder. I prefer to let the corn be the star.
I did modify this recipe a bit from the How to Feed a Loon recipe (keeping the bacon but making a few little changes to suit my tastes). I encourage you to check out their original recipe and then put your own spin on it like I did.
What have I learned from this experience. Well, as a result of my lack of organization (loosing recipes) combined with my love of cooking and food photography, I've decided to blog some of my favorite recipes or recipes that I want to test on this blog. It will accomplish 3 things: 1) I will never loose another recipe again. I will always know where to find it. 2) I get to cook and photograph beautiful food, and 3) I can share my favorite recipes and photography with others. Win, win, win!
Enjoy the recipe!
FARM FRESH CORN CHOWDER - 6-8 servings
INGREDIENTS | INSTRUCTIONS |
5-6 ears of corn | Cut the corn kernels from the ear, Reserve a handful for garnish. Also reserved the corn cobs for later. |
6 slices of thick cut bacon, diced | Heat a 3-4 quart heavy pot over low heat and add the bacon. |
2T unsalted butter | Once bacon has rendered a couple Tablespoons of fat, increase heat and cook until crisp. |
1 medium onion, diced | Pour off all but Tablespoons of fat and add butter, onions, peppers, thyme, bay leaf. Saute until peppers are soft. |
1 large red bell pepper | Add kernels, potatoes, corn cobs and stock. Turn up heat, cover and bring to a boil for 10 minutes. |
1T of fresh thyme | Add half the contents of the pot to a blender and puree. Pour back into pot. |
1 bay leaf | Reduce heat to medium and add salt and pepper. |
4 peeled Yukon Gold potatoes, 1/2" dice | Stir in cornstarch mixture. |
4 cups of chicken stock | As soon as chowder as come back to a boil, remove from heat, remove cobs and stir in heavy cream. |
1t kosher salt | Let the chowder to sit for an hour to allow the flavors to meld together. |
1/2t pepper | Reheat, but not boil. Ladle into bowls and garnish with chives and reserved corn. |
2T cornstarch dissolved in 2T water | |
1 cup heavy cream | |
2T of chives, minced |