The Easiest Corn Chowder

As many of my past posts might suggest, I am not one to shy away from one pot dinners. And not only one pot dinners, but dinners that use the grocery store to it's fullest. I really feel that the right personal touches can make a seemingly uninteresting meal into something special and individual.

This creamy, warm, and delicious soup is one such example. Everyone loves a good chowder, but how often do we take the initiative to make it ourselves?! This is absolutely the place to start. Here it is, the EASIEST (and very delicious) Corn Chowder.

Here's what you need:
1 can whole kernel corn (14.5 oz)
1 can cream style corn (14.5 oz)
1 can condensed potato soup (10 oz)
1 medium onion, diced
4 slices of bacon, diced
1.5 large potatoes, cubed
2 cups milk
1 cup fat free chicken broth

Here's what you do:
In a large sauce pot, saute the onions and bacon until the onions are translucent and the bacon is cooked crisp. Who doesn't LOVE bacon?!

Add the milk, broth, corn kernels, cream style corn, and soup. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.(Here is where the grocery store is really helping!)

Add the potatoes to the soup. Bring soup to a boil. Season with salt and pepper, as always.

Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for about 25 minutes, stirring ocassionally.
When the potatoes are tender, the soup is ready to enjoy!

I am realizing now what a bad blogger I am! I was SO excited about this dinner that I didn't get a picture of the final product. Essentially, it is a slightly thick soup with lovely chunks of potato and bacon throughout. The color is a nice, pale yellow. The taste, of course, is a little sweet, a little salty, and a whole lot of heartwarming.

I should mention that this was the first time I used chicken broth in this recipe. I enjoy a really nice, thick chowder. However I was trying to think of how I could cut the heaviness of this soup without compromising any of the flavor. The fat free broth is a little less intense of a flavor and worked perfectly. You get serious help in the thickness department from the potato soup and cream style corn that taking out one cup of milk (original recipe is 3 cups of milk) and replacing it with a light broth did just the trick!

This soup is truly spectacular hot out of the pot, and it is also great the next day for a nice, hearty lunch! I can't really think of anything wrong with this -- corn, bacon, and potatoes. What could be better? Next time you have a craving for a nice, classic chowder, give this recipe a try. It'll warm you right up :-)