Chipotle Corn Soup

Before local corn harvests disappear, I want to share this Chipotle Corn Soup recipe. Ooh, it’s good — sweet and spicy.

Some of you may know my love for chipotle. Just last Thursday I made chipotle-infused Slow Cooker Barbecue Pulled Chicken from a recipe I found on the Elly Say Sopa blog, but, as usual, I forgot to take a photo. My phone was next to the stove when I finished making this Chipotle Corn Soup. This soup hit the chipotle sweet spot with just enough of a smoky kick to make my resident chilehead happy too.

The recipe comes from Chow, home of the Chowhound discussion boards –a good source of food information when you’re planning trips. You can serve the soup either hot or cold. I served it hot the night I made it for dinner, and then again as a gravy for biscuits. Oh yes, that just kind of happened one morning. And then again another morning.

I served the soup with Insalata Caprese aka fresh mozzarella (that is, fresh-ish, since my mozz came from Lowe’s Foods), tomato and basil salad with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, red hot pepper flakes, salt and pepper. I also made a Zucchini Bisquick Casserole. Now that I think of it, Jim gave me the corn soup/gravy and biscuit idea by dipping a piece of zucchini casserole into the soup.

Add this soup to your menu soon so you can have a taste of summer before it’s too late. Few things are better than fresh sweet summer corn; take advantage of your local harvest while you can.

Chipotle Corn Soup

Makes about 5 cups, per Chow – I honestly don’t recall if that’s accurate.

You’ll need a large bowl, sharp knife, Dutch oven or large saucepan, and immersion blender (or regular blender if you don’t have an immersion).

• 6-8 ears white or yellow corn, shucked (about 6 cups – I used 6 ears, Chow says 8 ears)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/4 stick)
• 2 slices bacon, chopped
• 1/2 – 1 teaspoon (or more) minced chipotles in adobo sauce – this will depend on your tolerance for heat
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced (white and light green parts separated from the green parts)
• 1-1/2 cups whole milk
• 1-1/2 cups water

Remove the corn kernels from the cobs. Here’s how I do that:

Cut the stalks off the cobs. Place the cob in a large bowl (stalk-end down), and using a sharp knife, slice down from the top to the bottom of the cob, getting as much of the kernels as you can. Continue to rotate the cob and slice off kernels. When you’re down, you can often find more kernels to slice on the sharp vertical edges (corners of your slices). When done, using the back of your knife, scrape down the cob to squeeze out any sweet juice.

Melt the butter in a Dutch oven or large saucepan over medium heat until foaming. Add the bacon and sauté until nearly crisp. Add the chipotle, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, a pinch of black pepper, and the white and light green parts of the scallions. Set aside the remaining green parts to use as a garnish. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have softened, about 3 minutes.

Add the corn kernels, remaining 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, milk, and water and stir to combine. Increase the heat to medium high and bring the mixture to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the flavors have melded and the corn kernels are crisp yet tender (not mushy), about 15-20 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, puree soup until fairly smooth. I didn’t do it until it was smooth, it would have taken too long. Mine had a rough texture. Or, using a regular blender, purée the soup in batches until smooth, removing the small cap from the blender lid (the pour lid) and covering the space with a kitchen towel (this allows steam from the hot soup to escape and prevents the blender lid from popping off).

Season with salt and pepper as needed. If serving chilled, refrigerate the soup until cold, at least 3 hours. Garnish with the remaining scallions and serve.

Original recipe: Chipotle Corn Soup, Chow