Summery Corn Chowder (Light Lemongrass-Scented Corn Soup With Red Bell Pepper)

Lovely, luscious, yet a light soup, Summery Corn Chowder has a lemon grass scented broth enriched with a touch of coconut milk! This is perfect for late summer or early autumn when there is an abundance of tender sweet corn and succulent red bell peppers. Sunny yellow corn, bright red bell pepper, and green herbs makes the chowder beautiful to behold.

Notes:
It is very easy to make Vegetable Stock or broth. When prepping veggies and herbs, reserve all the clean scraps, keep them in a bag or container until you have enough. They can also be kept frozen adding more as you prep until you have a good amount. Any extra broth also may be frozen for longer storage.

If you fresh corn is not an option, use 14 - 16 oz frozen corn kernels. The lemongrass broth can be prepared without the corncobs; rest of the recipe is still the same.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

3 ears fresh corn

1 quart Vegetable Stock or Water
1/4 tsp Turmeric

1 stalk fresh Lemongrass, crushed & coarsely chopped
1 bunch Stems from fresh Parsley and/or Coriander/Cilantro 

1 medium Potato, any type, scrubbed well

1 large Red Bell Pepper, seeded & diced small

1 small Onion, finely chopped    

Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup Coconut Milk
2 Scallions (Green Onions), both white and green parts thinly sliced

2 Tbsp Italian parsley OR Fresh Coriander/Cilantro, chopped

2 Tbsp Cashew OR Coconut cream for garnish
Extra Parsley or Cilantro for garnishing

METHOD:

Cut off the lower portion of the stems from the coriander/cilantro; if using parsley, pull off tender stems and leaves. Reserve the leafy parts of both parsley and coriander for other uses. Wash the stems, and pinch into small pieces and put in a stock pot.

Cut kernels from cobs, then scrape the cobs with the edge of a knife to extract all the milky fluid from the base of the kernels. Reserve the corn kernels and the cobs separately.

Combine lemongrass, coriander/cilantro stems, the corn cobs, whole potato, turmeric, and stock/broth/water in the stock pot, bring to a good boil, reduce the heat and simmer 20 minutes. Cool and strain the stock and reserve the stock and potato, discarding the lemongrass and corn cobs.

Peel the potato if you wish (peeling is quick and easy while potato is still hot or warm), and cut into small dice; reserve.

Saute the onion in a little of the broth (or use a tiny bit of oil) until translucent in a soup pan for about 2 or 3 minutes.

Tip the the rest of the broth into the pan. Add salt and peppper to taste, the corn (and liquid from the cobs), and red pepper to stock, simmer until vegetables are tender - about 15 minutes.

Stir in coconut milk and the diced potato along with the scallions and simmer for another five minutes. Remove from heat.

Add parsley/cilantro, and salt or pepper to adjust seasoning.

Serve garnished with the cashew or coconut cream and a sprig of  parsley or cilantro. Enjoy!!