Thanks, Ina, For Your Corn Chowder

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This is a Barefoot Contessa recipe. Ina Garten is the Barefoot Contessa. She’s on the Food Channel if you want to watch her.

The way they film her cooking is great. Her camera men get right in there and fill the screen with food as if they were taking a still shot to frame and hang on the wall.

She just looks like she’d be fun to know, doesn’t she? I’d love to be her friend. Her background is fascinating. She worked in the Whitehouse at one time (NOT in a foodie capasity) then she moved to New York State where she bought The Barefoot Contessa. I don’t think it was a restaurant, but from what I can tell on TV, they prepared food sort of like a deli, except it was remarkable food. 

I have all her cookbooks except  her newest one, and I already have it on my list for my birthday. (Fingers crossed.)

Here’s one G-Man requests on a regular basis–

Ina’s Corn Chowder

• 8 ounces bacon, chopped
• 1/4 cup good olive oil
• 6 cups chopped yellow onions (4 large onions)
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 12 cups chicken stock
• 6 cups medium-diced white boiling potatoes, unpeeled (2 pounds)
• 10 cups corn kernels, fresh (10 ears) or frozen (3 pounds)
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1/2 pound sharp white cheddar cheese, grated

Directions

In a large stockpot over medium-high heat, cook the bacon and olive oil until the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and butter to the fat, and cook for 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent.

Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and turmeric and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and potatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. If using fresh corn, cut the kernels off the cob and blanch them for 3 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain. (If using frozen corn you can skip this step.) Add the corn to the soup, then add the half-and-half and cheddar. Cook for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is melted. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Serve hot with a garnish of bacon.

Now just to be honest, I’ve never made it exactly like Ina does. For a long time, I couldn’t find tumeric, so I left it out. When I found it, I learned I didn’t like the flavor.

Why ruin a good thing? I leave it out.

And the grocery store in C-Town doesn’t carry white cheddar. Let me amend that. If the grocer in C-Town carries white cheddar, I can’t find it. 😉 I just use regular mild cheddar. (White sounds mild to me.) 

I’ve never used fresh corn in this recipe–only frozen. (Fresh corn is for grilling and eating off the cob or in Grandmommy Corn. I’ll post that another time.)

 And if I don’t have chicken stock, I made the stuff with cubes and boiling water.

Okay, that’s it. It’s a wonderful recipe and makes a lot. (I cut it in half and we still have it for a whole week.)

I’m sending a big Thank You! to Ina. You make eating at my house taste so much better!