Corn Chowder "Light"

     I live in the heart of sweetcorn country. There are festivals, roadside stands and corn in various forms on the menus of area restaurants this time of year. One night last week I had a cup of the best corn chowder at our local "fancy place". I knew that it was loaded with butter and cream, but it was so good. I decided to try to duplicate the creamy, rich flavor without all the calories and I got good results. If calories aren't an issue for you, you can use cream instead of milk, add more bacon or stir in some shredded cheese at the end.

     I started with 6 ears of fresh sweetcorn, raw. I sliced it off the cob. In a small stockpot, I added the corn to 4 T. of real butter, 2 stalks of chopped celery and 1 cup of chopped carrots. Bring the mixture to a high heat while stirring to melt the butter, reduce the heat to low, cover and let the mixture soften.

     In a separate saucepan, place some diced potatoes. I used 5 smaller new potatoes from the local farner's market. Fresh potatoes have a creamier texture than those that have been in the store for weeks. To the potatoes add 1 bay leaf, 1/4 tsp. of black pepper, a pinch of thyme and 1 can of chicken broth. Simmer the potatoes until tender and remove the bay leaf.

     While the potatoes are cooking, sprinkle the tender corn mixture with 1/2 cup flour, stir and set off the heat.

     When the potatoes are tender, put the corn mixture back on medium high heat until you can hear it cooking. Stir in the potato and broth mixture and the soup will thicken very quickly. Add 3 cups of milk stirring constantly and reduce heat. I used 2 percent milk. We only buy skim milk, so 2 percent to us is like cream and was certainly "creamy" enough to make the soup delicious. Sprinkly with a bit of crumbled cooked bacon before serving. I would have liked more bacon mixed into the soup...but, I was trying to keep it "light"! Add salt and pepper to taste.

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