Corn Chowder with Summer Squash

5 from 2 votes

Corn Chowder with Summer Squash

This creamy soup can be modified with more potatoes and less squash, or you can omit one or the other entirely, depending on what is available. For a richer soup, substitute 1/2 cup milk with 1/2 cup cream in second addition.

Prep Time20

Cook Time20

Total Time40

Course: Soup

Servings:

Calories: 392kcal

Author: Good Dinner Mom

Ingredients

4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled. Reserve approximately 1 Tablespoon rendered bacon fat
1 cup sliced green onions, divided
½ cup sliced celery, slice fairly thin
2 medium yellow squash, chopped (about 1 pound)
1 large red potato, diced into 3/4-inch cubes
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 ¼ cups milk, divided
4 cups fresh cut corn, from about 5-6 cobs, or 1 pound, divided (May use frozen or canned but fresh, uncooked on the cob is fabulous)
1 ½ tsp chopped fresh thyme, or ½ tsp dried
1 teaspoon salt, then more to taste if desired
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese, for serving (try sharp cheddar)

Special Equipment:

Dutch oven
Blender

Instructions

Heat 1 Tablespoon reserved bacon fat in a dutch oven or very large saute' pan over medium-high heat.
Add ¾ cup green onions, ½ cup celery, 2 squash and 1 potato. Sauté until tender, about 8 minutes, adding in 3 garlic cloves during last 30 seconds of sauteing. Reduce heat to medium-low heat.
Add 1 ¾ cups milk, 1 ½ cups of the corn, 1 ½ teaspoon thyme, 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper to the sautéed veggies. Let this heat over low simmer.
To a blender add remaining 2 ½ cups of corn, remaining 1 ½ cups milk. Process in blender until nearly smooth (about 30 seconds). Add pureed mixture to the pot of other ingredients and stir to blend.
Cook until heated through. If using fresh corn from the cob, continue to heat up to 10 minutes to allow the blended corn to soften. Simmer only, don't boil. Serve warm with shredded cheese, crumbled bacon and remaining sliced green onions.

Cook's Note:

One option that takes a little more time but is worth it is to first saute' the summer squash in a tiny bit of butter on medioum-high heat in a small sauce pan, letting it get just browned but not soft before adding into the pot with the other vegetables.

Nutrition