The fresh corn from Andy's County Fair Farm farm down the road is really sweet this year. Today I decided to make a large batch of corn chowder with Andy's corn and freeze it for those frosty days when a good chowder hits the spot. I dug up and scrubbed some fingerling potatoes I planted this year and pulled some leeks from the garden. My leeks are more like baby leeks as our growing season here in Maine isn't long enough to grow big, fat leeks. Andy also had some mild jalapenos at his farm stand. I bought some and grilled them to add to the chowder. Now the hint for making a lowfat, thick and creamy corn chowder is to take advantage of the creamy "corn milk" from fresh sweet corn and use starchy potatoes as a thickener. That way you will get a really thick chowder without the calories of cream.
Page's Ultimate Corn Chowdah
12 ears of sweet corn, cooked, and cut off the cob
2 pats of butter
1 cup chopped leeks (substitute onion if leeks are not available)
5 cups finely diced potatoes, cooked until soft
1 quart of skim milk
2 cups chicken broth
6 slices of cooked bacon, crumbled
optional: 4 grilled and chopped mild jalapenos or other mild green chili.
Salt and pepper to taste
1. In a large pot, saute leeks (or onions) in butter until just soft.
2. Pour skim milk into pot and add half the corn and 3 cups of the potatoes.
3. Meanwhile in another pot, bring the broth and remaining potatoes and corn to a boil. Simmer for about 5 minutes until potatoes are quite mushy. Using an immersion blender (or your food processor) blend the potatoes, corn, and broth. The potatoes will release their starch and the "corn milk" from the blended corn will add additional creaminess.The mixture should be quite thick.
4. Stir the thickened mixture into the corn, potatoes, and milk.
5. Add the chopped jalapenos and crumbled bacon. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. You can serve it immediately or let it set in the refrigerator overnight for the flavors to develop.
This makes a BIG batch of chowder- freeze half and eat the rest!
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