Corn Chowder

This recipe comes from the Barefoot Contessa cookbook.  If you like corn, it's the best corn chowder I've had!  This recipe makes a lot so you can easily half the recipe.

Ingredients:

8 ounces bacon, chopped

1/4 cup olive oil

6 cups chopped yellow onions (4 large onions)

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter (I used salted butter so I cut down on the salt)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons kosher salt (1 teaspoon)

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (I used 1/2 teaspoon, if you like pepper you can always add later)

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

12 cups chicken stock

6 cups medium-diced white boiling potatoes or new red potatoes, unpeeled (dice potatoes in small bite size pieces)

10 cups corn kernels, fresh (8-10 ears)

2 cups half-and-half

1/2 lb. sharp white Cheddar cheese, shredded (I used Cracker Barrel Vermont Sharp-White)

Method:

In a large stock pot on medium-high heat, cook the bacon and olive oil until the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve.  (At this point I drained out most of the bacon grease and left only about a teaspoon)  Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and butter to the fat, and cook for 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and turmeric and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and potatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. If using fresh corn, cut the kernels off the cobs and blanch the kernels for 3 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain. (If using frozen corn, you can skip this step.) Add the corn to the soup, and then add the half-and-half and 8oz (reserve 2oz for garnish) Cheddar. Cook for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot with a garnish of bacon and cheese.

Note: Make more bacon to garnish soup, there is never enough bacon!

Makes 10-12 Servings (For a smaller batch, just half the ingredients 5-6 servings)