Friday, August 31, 2012

Healthy and Yum Vegetable Corn Chowder

Corn chowder is great to have as a soup on the side, or with rustic bread as a wholesome meal. I don't usually cook with meat so I kept this version mostly vegetarian (I did add chicken broth, but you can easily substitute for vegetable broth). Corn chowder has a ton of veggies in it so its very nutritious and great for you.
I love it when healthy does not directly translate to cardboard eating.
Ingredients
Frozen (or fresh, boiled) corn - 1 and 1/4 cup
Olive Oil - 1 tablespoon
Onions - 1 small, chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves, finely chopped
Thyme - 1/2 teaspoon
Rosemary - 1/2 teaspoon
Boiled Potatoes - 2 small, chopped into bite sized chunks
Celery - 1 stalk, chopped
Carrots - 1, peeled and chopped
Red Bell Pepper - 1/2, chopped
Zucchini  - 1/2 cup when chopped
Milk - 1/2 cup
Chicken (or vegetable) broth - 1/2 cup
All Purpose Flour - 2 tablespoons
Salt - 1 teaspoon, or to taste
Pepper - 1/2 teaspoon, or to taste

Procedure
1) Chop all the veggies and set them aside. Pulse 1 cup corn in a blender with 1/2 cup water until they are a chunky paste.
2) Heat olive oil in a pan or soup pot and add garlic and onions. Saute till onions are translucent.
3) Add thyme and rosemary and saute for a minute.
4) Add the veggies : carrots, celery, bell pepper, potatoes, zucchini. Throw in some salt and pepper and saute for 3-4 minutes on medium flame.
5) Add the corn puree and stir.
6) Add the chicken broth and let it simmer for 4-5 minutes on a medium-low flame.
7) In a cup, stir together milk and all purpose flour until no lumps remain.
8) Add the milk to the pot and stir.
9) Let it simmer for a few minutes and then do a taste-test to check if you need to add salt or pepper. You can also choose to add some water if soup appears too thick, but chowder tastes best when its slightly on the thicker side.
10) Add the remaining 1/4 cup corn and serve warm!
This soup is reminiscent of the Veg. Sweet Corn soup that is popular in India.

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