Corn Chowder

Growing up in the country, summers somehow ended up a little more laborious than they probably should have been. For instance, there were always a few days each summer that my two friends and I sold corn roadside out of the back of a truck. Their dad grew some of the sweetest and juiciest silver queen corn and he would fill up the truck bed to the brim with ears of corn. We parked by the town 7-11 and sat on the tailgate, selling corn by the baker’s dozen faster than we could load them into bags. Locals and non-locals alike went crazy over the summertime treat and before we knew it, the truck was empty except a few bags we saved to take home for ourselves.

I love eating corn all summer long, straight from the cob, grilled and tossed into salads, or mixed along with cornbread. But, by the time we reach September, I finally deem it the appropriate season to make corn chowder. It’s a good transitional recipe between hot and cold weather and starts to bring on the comfort food aspect while still keeping the fresh summer flavors. This particular chowder packs a nice bit of heat from poblano peppers and some cayenne and gets a good smokiness from the bacon. A little half-and-half is added at the end to thicken it up and it’s finished up with a scattering of scallions, a dollop of mascarpone, and loads of black pepper. Have some buttered pumpernickel bread on the side for soaking up the delicious broth.

Corn Chowder
Adapted from The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook via David Lebovitz
Serves 4

Ingredients
8oz bacon
3 large ears of corn
2 poblano peppers
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs. butter
4 cups chicken broth
1 large Yukon gold potato, cut into small-medium cubes
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
½ cup half-and-half
2 scallions, chopped
mascarpone cheese (optional)
salt and pepper, to serve

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the kernels of corn off the cob and reserve the cobs for later. Remove the ribs and seeds from the peppers and finely dice into pieces somewhat similar to the size of the corn kernels. Toss the corn and the peppers with the olive oil and salt on a baking sheet and place in the oven for 25-30 minutes, tossing occasionally, until lightly browned.

Cut the bacon into medium-sized pieces and cook in a large pot over medium heat until crispy.  Spoon the bacon onto a paper-towel-lined plate to drain and set aside. Remove all but 1 Tbs. of the bacon grease. Add the butter to the remaining bacon grease and heat over medium. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 6-8 minutes until translucent. Add the potatoes, the corn and peppers, the cayenne, and the stock. Stir to combine and set the corncobs into the pot as well. This way the flavor of the sweet corn can seep into the broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook the soup until the potatoes are tender.

Remove the corncobs from the soup and add the bacon. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Stir in the half-and-half and continue to cook until the soup warms back up.   Ladle the soup into bowls, top with the scallions and a dollop of mascarpone, if desired. Top with salt and pepper.