Sweet Corn Chowder

I realized on Sunday that is already August.  August!  As usual, this year has flown by and I have no idea where the time went.  As a kid, I remember it taking forever for Christmas to come, but now it seems to sneak up on me every year.  August means that we only have one more month of summer produce before the fall bounty starts coming in.  But I'm not quite ready!  I didn't use the summer flavors to their fullest.  So before apple season is upon us, I am going to share with you some awesome recipes to use up all of those summer fruits and vegetables before they go away.  First up: corn.  This recipe comes from Ari who runs both Baking and Books and The Vegetarian Family Table.  I lover her sites.  This is a tasty and very low fat recipe considering how creamy the end product is.  My husband described this as creamed corn soup, and he's pretty much dead on.  Sprinkle some cheddar cheese on top and you have a perfect summer meal.

Sweet Summer Corn Chowder

by Ari on The Vegetarian Family Table

4 tablespoons olive oil

3/4 cup diced scallions, white and light green parts only (I omitted this)

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 cup flour

4 cups skim milk (use what you have, I used 1%)

2 cups vegetable stock

Kernels from 6 ears of corn

1/2 cup cheddar cheese

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the scallions and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until the scallions are soft, about 2-3 minutes.  Turn the heat down to medium and add the flour, stirring constantly until the mixture turns a light golden brown and smells cooked.

Add the milk and vegetable stock, stirring until it has combined with the flour mixture, about 2-3 minutes.

Add the corn kernels and bring to a boil.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn has cooked through, about 15 minutes.

Remove 1/4 cup of the kernels, then puree the chowder.  To do this: Remove the soup from the burner, and puree with a hand blender or a regular blender.  If you use a regular blender be sure not to create an airtight seal with the lid by closing the top entirely.  If you do, heat from the chowder will cause hot air to expand and splatter chowder all over you. (Believe me, it will.  I've done it before.  Not fun.  I have a hand blender now though, and it's much easier.)  If you have a hand blender, it's definitely the easier way to go.

Stir in the cheddar cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle the chowder into bowls and top with the reserved corn kernels.  I topped it with more cheddar too.

Note: For a thicker chowder, you can add 1 large peeled and diced baking potato to the pot when you add the corn kernels.