Corn Chowder

With the thunder and lightening storm that has been going on around here, all I want to do is cuddle up and watch old movies and eat comfort food. What is it about warm, rich food that is so good? Well, I was going to make Potato soup this afternoon and then I thought I have not made Corn Chowder forever. So I planned to make a large batch of a potato base soup and make half corn chowder and half potato soup. The kids have never had corn chowder so I did not think they would like all the lumps in it. However after I was sampling a bowl and they each tasted it and loved it I made two different corn chowders instead. I made a roasted bell pepper corn chowder and a regular corn chowder. Yum yum.

Here is my recipe:

Corn Chowder

4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/4 medium onion, finely diced
1 and 1/2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 carrots, peeled and grated
2 cans of corn, drained
water
salt and pepper
1/2 cup milk


Directions
Place potato chunks in a stock pot fill with water until potatoes are covered. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are soft and crumble easily. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain out half the water into a separate bowl and save. Mash potato and water mixture until thick soupy consistency reached. This is your soup base. Add onions, carrots, and celery and cook until tender. From here blend half to 3/4 of the soup with one can of corn. Pour it all back into the stock pot and add the last can of corn and milk. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the soup if too thick add the reserved water or more milk if you prefer.

*I used Trader Joe's Rice Drink instead of milk and it was really good without the stuffy nose.
My sister adds a cubed ham and cheese to her soup, which is tasty too.
Serve with green salad and warm corn tortillas.

Clockwise: Celery, Carrot, Roasted Bell Pepper and Onion

Roasted Bell Corn Chowder

1/2 Yellow Bell Pepper
1/2 Red bell Pepper
4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/4 medium onion, finely diced
2 cans of corn, drained
water
salt and pepper
1/2 cup milk


Directions
Place potato chunks in a stock pot fill with water until potatoes are covered. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are soft and crumble easily.
While potatoes are boiling roast the bell peppers. Slice peppers into inch strips. Place peppers in a saute pan over medium heat cooking until skin is fairly spotted but not burnt.
Remove from pan and place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap for ten to fifteen minutes, until peel comes off easily. Remove skins and chop up peppers. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain out half the water into a separate bowl and save. Mash potato and water mixture until thick soupy consistency reached. This is your soup base. Add onions and cook until tender. From here blend half to 3/4 of the soup with one can of corn. Pour it all back into the stock pot and add the last can of corn, roasted bell peppers and milk. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the soup if too thick add the reserved water or more milk if you prefer.

*I used Trader Joe's Rice Drink instead of milk and it was really good without the stuffy nose.
You could add bacon too to this recipe and it would be smokey and rich too.
Serve with green salad and warm corn tortillas.



It hits the spot on a chilly, rainy day, enjoy!


With all of my non-baking recipes, I usually do not follow them totally, I usually just wing it so feel free to modify and let me know what you did. I love new ideas