Soup month, Christmas month—great go-togethers; this corn chowder helps

Is December soup month, or what? These cool days, many of them rainy (no one in parched Texas is complaining about that fact, even if the weather seems less than Christmasy) are open invitations to have a stove top with a pot bubbling—with soup that warms all the way down.

I’m still finding recipes in my Taste of Home Thanksgiving Recipe Cards book that beg to be tried; next Thanksgiving seems too long to wait for them. One of those I had starred was a recipe for Corn Chowder. To me, golden chunks of fresh corn floating in a creamy base looked just beautiful as I gazed at the photo. (I had some fresh carrots on hand, so I threw them in as a taste addition.)

Hubby pronounced this the best soup he’d ever had. Well, you know Hubby; he’s always full of superlatives and affirmatives, but he may have been close to right on this one. Don’t know when I’ve dined on a more tasty soup. Preparation was simple, too. Boil the first part on the stove; process it in batches in a blender until the corn is blended smooth; then return to the pan and add the remaining fresh corn , carrot, red pepper, and spices.

I served this with some warm cornbread, which the recipe card recommends. Hubby and I had ourselves a feast!

Corn Chowder

1 medium onion, chopped

6 cups fresh (or frozen) corn, divided

3 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided

1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/8 teaspoon pepper

dash cayenne pepper

1/2 cup grated carrot (my addition)

Coat a large saucepan with cooking spray. Add onion; cook and stir mixture over medium heat for 4 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add 4 cups corn; cook and stir until corn is softened, about 5 minutes. Add 2 cups broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until corn is tender. Cool slightly. In a blender process soup in batches until smooth; return all to the pan. Add the red pepper, rosemary, thyme, pepper, cayenne, and remaining corn and broth (I added the carrot here). Cook and stir for 10 minutes or until the corn is tender. Makes 6 servings.