shall we dance, or i love corn chowder

If I can manage one coherent thought today, I’m going to chalk up the day as a rousing success. Currently, the boy is studying and holding a thermometer under his tongue and I am trying to get in touch with the school nurse so I can arrange early pick-up for the girl.

Good times.

But enough negativity, how about some dancing and corn chowder? (Really, they go together.)

Last night, our Cub Scout pack celebrated with the annual Blue and Gold Banquet. There was dancing in celebration of Native American culture. The teens on the dance team did a wonderful job and they served as great ambassadors for Scouting and just teens in general.

I’m not posting faces, but you get the idea…

And we had a pot luck dinner – I brought corn chowder. (Thanks for sticking around while I got to the point.) I also brought Styrofoam cups, for which I am paying environmental penance. What did I not bring? Spoons.

Corn Chowder

1 small onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 teaspoon curry powder

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound (ish) potatoes, peeled and chopped

4 cups vegetable broth

2 cans creamed corn

2 cups frozen corn (or fresh, if you have it)

2 cups milk (preferably organic, whole milk)

2 tablespoons butter

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Kosher salt

Combine onion, garlic and curry powder in olive oil in a small pan. Sauté until onion is translucent.

Boil potatoes in salted water until tender. Drain (reserve 1/2 cup of cooking liquid) and return to pot. Add onion mixture, deglazing the pan with potato cooking liquid. Add broth, corn and milk. Simmer, stirring often, until soup is heated through.

Blend with a hand blender until soup is smooth. (You could do this in batches in a blender or food processor if you don’t have a hand blender.) Add butter and pepper. Simmer until butter has melted.

This soup is inspired by a recipe I got from a cookbook years ago. If I can find it, I will give proper credit, but it probably doesn’t resemble the original recipe very much at this point.

Notes: Measurements are very flexible. If you like a little more kick, add more curry. Not sweet enough? Add a tablespoon of sugar. Carnivores could use chicken broth, I suppose. Make it more or less creamy by adding more or less milk, some heavy cream and/or a can of evaporated milk. This soup is better reheated the next day, which is why I saved some for lunch.

I probably won’t dance while I eat my reheated soup, but you never know.