Corn and Green Chile Chowder

I guess I'm on a soup kick this week. This one turned out nicely and is quick to make. Although it was made mostly from leftovers, I kept track of what I added so that I can make it again...on purpose.

As an aside, the basic method of this soup -- making a roux with the onions, butter and flour, then adding some broth and milk -- is a great substitute for canned "cream of" soup in other recipes.  You can play around with any way you like by adding bits of cooked chicken, mushrooms or garlic, using tomato sauce as part of the liquid, making it thicker or thinner by adding more or less liquid, etc. This gives you more control over ingredients than if you used the canned stuff.


Corn and Green Chile Chowder

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour (mine was a mix of whole wheat and white flours)
2 cups chicken broth (homemade, canned or bouillon)
2 cups milk
1-1/2 cups leftover fried potatoes (use any leftover cooked potatoes you have)
frozen corn (as much or as little as you like, I used about a cup of leftover corn)
1 can diced green chiles (I used less because I had some in the fridge; will use a whole can next time)
salt and pepper to taste
shredded cheese for garnish

In a large saucepan, cook onion in hot butter until tender. Stir in flour and cook until thick and bubbly. Combine broth and milk, then whisk into flour mixture, cooking until thick and smooth. Add potatoes, corn, and chiles. Simmer until heated through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top individual servings with shredded cheese.

Makes about 8 servings.

This post was written in conjunction with the Real Food Deals carnival at Premeditated Leftovers.  Please visit by clicking HERE to read about other Real Food Deals and recipes.