Curried Corn & Chard Soup

Eating local, organic, seasonal, and unrefined foods is a way of life for me, and for obvious reasons, summer makes eating a rainbow of foods not only possible, but oh so delicious! I must say that I feel pretty spoiled living here in Northern California, there are multiple farmer's markets just about every day, overflowing with the most gorgeous vegetables, fragrant herbs, and succulent fruits a gal could ask for. The farmer's markets also offer the opportunity to taste some the local food crafters goods, ie; artisinal breads, jams and jellies made from locally grown fruit, and fresh goat cheese from local goats. Actually, the thought of those 3 foods together is making me salivate a little... Even though in California, we do have an extended growing season for lots of varieties of fruits and vegetables, I am of the mind that if something you love to eat is in season, you better gorge enjoy yourself! And so we come to corn! The hubby and I have been doing our part to keep the local farmers in the black with our corn consumption. While the corn here is pretty delicious, I must say, it does seem to pale in comparison to the juicy, sweet corn we get back east, I know, I know, boo hoo for me.

So, with that, I offer you my version of curried corn soup. As I mentioned here, I don't really measure, so use the spice amounts at your discression. You can always add, but you can't take away. So start with a little and go from there.

Health benefits of ingredients!

Greatly adapted from Rebecca Katz

12 ears of corn, shucked, kernels removed, cobs & silk reserved
2 small onions, diced small
1/2 bunch of rainbow chard, stems removed, leaves and stems finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, minced
1/8+/- cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp +/- curry powder
1 1/2 +/- tsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 +/- tsp smoked paprika
sea salt and pepper to taste
Fresh basil for garnish

Add corn cobs and silk to a large stock pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 30-60 minutes. Remove from heat and discard cobs and silk.

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large deep skillet. Add onions and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn, garlic, spices, and salt/pepper and stir. Cook the corn mixture for about 10 minutes, or until the corn turns golden and the mixture smells fragrant.

Then, working in batches, add a few scoops of corn and a few scoops of stock to a blender. Be sure not to fill the blender up too high and to cover the lid with a towel, the steam from the the mixture can cause the lid to fly off of the blender. Start with a low setting and work your way up to high. Blend for 1 minute, or until the the corn is pureed. Pour the soup through a sieve into a clean pot and use the back of a spoon to push the liquid through. Discard the leftover solids and repeat, leaving about 1/3-1/2 of the corn mixture whole.

Add the remaing corn mixture and chard stems to the pureed soup and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, add chard leaves, and allow to simmer until leaves are soft and tender. Remove from heat, taste for seasoning, and garnish with fresh basil. ENJOY!

xo, Katie