BACON CORN CHOWDER

Chowder, or Chowda, as we call it in Boston, is such a quintessential New England food. Here, we eat it year round and locals will slurp down a big bowl of yummy clam chowder on a hot August day. I am a lifelong chowder hater. Despite being surrounded by it constantly, I didn’t try my first bite of chowder until I was 28. Something about thick, creamy soup just didn’t do it for me.

That changed when Craig and I took a road trip to Nova Scotia. We experienced some incredible food, including locally smoked salmon and many different varieties of chowder. Clam, Shrimp, Seafood, Corn, and Vegetable to name a few. Littered around the Cabot Trail are wonderful little chowder houses. These tiny restaurants have some of the best chowder you’ll ever taste. After a long day of hiking and driving in the mountains, even I, the notorious chowder hater, was craving that creamy goodness.

I made this chowder for Craig, who constantly begs for it. He’s one of the weirdos that will drink the stuff on a hot summer day. So I decided to give in and try my hand at some traditional corn chowder. I lightened it up a bit with some half and half instead of heavy cream. The key to maximum creaminess it to puree some of the corn and potato mixture with some flour. This creates a thick base for the soup which compliments the smoky flavor of the bacon.

BACON CORN CHOWDER

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Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 8 oz smoked bacon, diced
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cup frozen yellow corn
• 1lb white or red potatoes, washed and chopped into 1″ chunks
• 3 cups low sodium chicken (or vegetable) broth
• 1 cup half and half
• 1 tsp salt
• 1.5 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme, washed
• 1 tbsp fresh chives, washed and chopped

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot or dutch oven, saute onion, celery, and bacon in olive oil on medium heat for 5-6 minutes, until softened
2. Add corn, potatoes, stock, salt, pepper, and paprika
3. Cover and bring to a boil
4. Reduce heat and simmer on med-low 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are fork tender
5. In a food processor, puree 1.5 cups of chowder with 1 tbsp of flour
6. Whisk pureed mixture back into chowder
7. Add half and half, thyme and chives
8. Cover and simmer on med-low for another 10 minutes
9. Serve hot with chives and black pepper