Tradition begs for corn chowder to be made at this time of the year when corn is at it’s peak in my neck of the woods! I love to curl up with a bowl of creamy, sweet soup and dream of cooler days.
Corn chowder not only highlights the freshest, sweetest corn but signifies the home stretch before the seasons change and fall is upon us. A fact I’m not particularly sad about and fully ready to embrace!
I am already anticipating all the soups yet to come, the fall pies waiting to be made and pumpkins! Bring on the pumpkins.
Fresh corn really doesn’t ask for much. Just a few ingredients make it shine. I used copious amounts of thyme to spice it up, salty bacon to counteract the natural sweetness and half & half for a milky richness.
I also recommend throwing a few of the stripped cobs right into the soup pot to give it more flavor. And I like lots of fresh black pepper to add a sharp and savory “bite” to the chowder.
And did I mention the potatoes? Just a few for the starch it adds, helping to thicken the soup and further the creaminess.
A rich and creamy corn chowder with bacon and thyme.
INGREDIENTS:
INSTRUCTIONS:
- In a large sauce pan or soup pot cook bacon until crispy. Remove and drain on a paper towel lined plate. Carefully drain grease. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil, the onion, celery, thyme, bay leaf and season well with salt and pepper. Saute until tender. Add garlic and saute until fragrant.
- Meanwhile remove kernels from cobs in a large bowl. Once kernels are removed turn the knife around and use the flat side to scrape the milk from the cobs. Snap one or two of the cobs in half to add to soup. Crumble the bacon.
- Add corn and potatoes to pot, along with half of the crumbled bacon, cook 3-4 minutes, stirring often. Add enough broth to generously cover the vegetables along with the a few of the cobs. Season again with salt and pepper.
- Bring to a simmer, 25 – 30 minutes. Remove two cups of the soup and blend until smooth, place a dish towel over blender lid to hold down before pureeing so the steam doesn’t blow the top off. Add soup back to pot with half & half or heavy cream. Taste and season again if needed. Simmer 5-10 minutes, remove bay leaf and cobs, serve with crumbled bacon over top.
Notes:
Copyright ©2013 Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice by Reeni Pisano All Rights Reserved.
Hi!
This is a ridiculously late comment I know but I was wondering if this would freeze? I will probably be only making this for myself but I was wondering if I could freeze it for lunches.
Hi Elle! I never tried freezing it myself and have heard conflicting things about freezing cream based soups. I would give it a go – heat slowly and mix often! Let me know how it goes. Have a good night!
You could freeze this before you put the heavy cream or milk in it, then when you thaw it, bring it back to temperature and finish it. That would simplify things a bit and you would not have to worry about the soup separating.
Thanks Lois!
hope you had a great christmas, love that you started a countdown!
Yum! I’ll have to try this soon before the corn disappears!
This sounds absolutely delicious. I love that you added thyme in this. The sweet corn and salty bacon combo is wonderful here, too!
This looks so creamy, comforting, and delicious!! I do love this recipe, but not the fact that it means fall is coming… Oh well, at least I have delicious soups like this to look forward to!
I seriously need to go grocery shopping to make some of your recipes… corn chowder sounds heavenly to me right now!