New England Style Corn Chowder

I think this chowder tastes best when made with freshly picked cob corn, but when you can't wait for summertime corn on the cob, frozen corn works well, too.



Ingredients:

2 slices bacon
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tbs flour
1 quart chicken stock
4 large potatoes
2 bay leaves
2 cups frozen corn, or corn cut from two cobs
1/2 cup soy half and half
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
salt and pepper

Directions: Cook the bacon in a heavy bottom saucepan until crisp. Remove the bacon and drain on paper towel. Pour out the fat from the pan, add olive oil and onion. Cook the onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour, then add a few tablespoons of the chicken stock. Stir the flour and stock mixture until it is smooth, then add the remaining chicken stock. Add the potatoes and bay leaves, and corn. If using fresh corn on the cob, use the sharp side of the knife to cut the kernels from the cob. Then, use the dull side of the knife to scrape the cobs, adding the milky corn juice to the soup. Simmer the soup until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the half and half and fresh parsley, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serves 4-6

Stealthy Cooking Tip: I've been checking out other chowder recipes and found something interesting. There's apparently a split camp between those who thicken their chowder with flour, and those who use cream as the thickener. Who knew! This recipe uses flour as the thickener, which allows less cream in the finishing step.