Creamy Corn Soup
Happy October!! Can we agree that it’s finally soup season? I hope so, because it might be hard for us to stay friends if we can’t. It’s just that it’s been so long and I can’t wait anymore!! Especially when fresh super sweet corn is still in season but won’t be for much longer and there is Creamy Corn Soup to be had!
How’s the weather where you are? Here in the Northeast, it still often feels like summer but the nights are definitely getting nippier (and it’s getting dark so much earlier) and though we’re supposed to get a 90º tomorrow, you can definitely tell that autumn is on its way. It won’t be long before steamy bowls of hot soup feel exactly right. But for now, indulge me a bit as I try to explain why you need to make this creamy corn soup right now!
First off, this soup is full of true corn flavor. To start you make a corn broth. Yup, that’s right. After you’ve cut the kernels off the cobs, you toss the cobs into water and boil them together to get an intensely “corny” broth.
In addition, a very generous amount of corn gets cooked with onion and potato and that corn broth and then pureed (please, please tell me you have an immersion blender—it makes life so much happier) to make a wonderfully thick corn chowder to which extra, cooked, but not pureed corn gets added, for even more corn joy!
To round things out you add just the tiniest bit of half-and-half (or milk or cream) so that every bite is creamy dreamy with little bits of corn adding great textural contrast.
It’s great for a light dinner with a green salad and maybe some crusty bread and even better when you realize there are leftovers and you get to have it for an easy and delicious lunch the next day!
Yippee! Soup season is back!! It’s sad how little it takes to make me happy…LOL!
Creamy Corn Soup
Makes 6 servings
You will need an immersion blender or regular blender for this.
Prep Time: About 1 hour (a lot of this is hands-free time)
Ingredients
8 or 9 ears of yellow corn yellow corn, kernels cut off and reserved (in total you need about 7 cups of corn), cobs set aside
Water
1-2 cups chicken broth (if you want to keep this vegetarian, you could use veggie broth or just all water)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 large russet potato, peeled and grated
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
1/4 cup half-and-half, milk or cream
Black pepper
Minced chives for garnish (optional)
The Recipe
1. Once you’ve cut the kernels off the cobs, place the cobs in a large pot and add just enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer and allow to cook for 30 minutes. Remove the cobs and thrown them away. Measure out the remaining liquid—you want enough to measure 5 cups. If you have enough corn water to do this, you’re all set. If not, supplement with chicken or veggie broth. Set aside. Dump out any extra corn water you may have and wipe out the pot with a paper towel to dry it—no need to wash.
2. Add the butter to the pot and place it over medium heat. When it’s melted, add in the onion and grated potato and cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes, until the onion is soft. Add in the reserved liquid, 6 cups of the corn kernels (reserve the rest) and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Partially cover the pot and bring to a boil. Then lower the heat and let simmer for 20 minutes,
3. Meanwhile, bring about 1/2 cup water to boil in a small pot and add the remaining corn. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, until the corn is tender. Drain and reserve.
4. When the soup is done, you can either use an immersion blender right away to puree it or let it cool for a bit and do it in batches in the blender. Either way, you want to puree the soup until it’s smooth and creamy. If you’ve done it with the immersion blender, simply add the reserved corn into the soup along with the half and half (or milk or cream) and reheat. Taste and season with more salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls, top with chives, if using and serve immediately or reheat over a low light if serving later. If you made this in a blender, carefully transfer the pureed mixture back into the pot, and then add in the reserved corn and half and half to reheat the soup and serve as desired.
5. Soup keeps well in an airtight container in the fridge for several days.
Enjoy!
Note: Recipe adapted from Pull Up A Chair by Tiffani Thiessen. I tinkered with this—used more corn, cut the dairy in half and used half and half instead of cream and didn’t need to use the chicken broth at all—I had enough corn water.
