How To Make Healthy Corn Chowder

How to Make Healthy Corn Chowder

Summer is over and that means schools are back in session.  As the school year starts, I know how important it is to have a healthy meal to serve that’s easy to make. Learn how to make healthy Corn Chowder using Silk Coconut Milk. Another Quick and Simple, Cooking for Kids recipe from CookLikeADad.com

Soup is Good Food.

If I told you that a chowder recipe is the fastest way to get you kids to eat more fruits and vegetables, would you try it?

Chowder doesn’t have to be about clams or seafood. In fact, this chowder recipe has everything to do with fruits and vegetables. That’s right, fruits and veggies. As part of my commitment to learn more plant-based nutrition, I have taken this corn chowder recipe and tweeked it with some key ingredients.   For example, the creamy base for this chowder is made with Silk Coconut Milk. Not only has Coconut Milk made it healthy with more calcium than dairy cream; but it also adds a sweeter, creamier taste to the recipe that has made my kids ask for more… Give it a try.

Shopping List:  Feeds a Family of 5+plus

½ Gallon of Silk, Coconut Milk

1-Cup of Bacon Bits

1-Cube of Salted Butter

2-3 Potatoes, peeled, cut and cubed

2-Carrots, peeled, cut and cubed

3-Celery Stalks, cut and chopped

1-Orange or Red Pepper

3-Ears of Corn (Yellow or White Corn)

1-Medium Onion, cut, and chopped

1-Tablespoon of Montreal Steak Seasoning

Optional Ingredient: 2 Garlic Cloves, minced

Equipment:

Large Skillet / Fry Pan

Large Soup Pot

Cooking Steps:  Grill Corn

The first step on this recipe is to get the corn grilled. I like to have a few “burn marks” on my corn before I add it to chowder mix because the burn adds to the flavor in this recipe. If you have a BBQ, that is a bonus, but if you have a dry griddle, that will work fine as well.  Place griddle on Med/High setting and cook corn.

The goal is to take 3-5 ears of corn and get all sides nice and roasted without creating “popcorn”, (That means too much burn will make the corn pop). In this recipe, I am adding a orange pepper because I like the sweet taste that the orange pepper adds to the soup mix. Make sure all sides of the pepper are roasted. Place the pepper and the corn in a large bowl  to cool when they are done roasting.

Next Step: Chop Veggies

Take your Carrots, Celery and Onion and give them all a good “clean, cut and cube” lesson. Place these veggies in a bowl and start with your next vegetable: the potato. Skin, Cut and Cube your potatoes to about 1-inch cubes. Since potatoes and carrots take the longest to cook, you want to make sure these two veggies are the smallest sized cut.  When you are done cutting the potatoes, add them to the other veggies and get ready for the next step.

Next Step: Remove Kernels, Colonel…

There are just words in the American English dictionary that confuse me to this day, as in the case of corn kernels and the Colonel in the Army… Either way, it is time to remove the kernels from the corn and collect them in a separate bowl. Just take a butter knife and run down the sides of each ear of corn and they should just drop right of the ear. Now, take the same butter knife and cut and chop the orange pepper. Make sure your remove the seeds and center of the pepper before cutting.

Next Step:  Bacon to the Rescue

Why add salt to this recipe when you can have Bacon? Bacon makes life happen, Bacon is the source of all good things in life. Ok, I am being silly, but when it comes to making kids eat more fruits and vegetables in their diet, you have to be resourceful and smart as a Dad Cooking Blogger. My kids love Bacon and that’s why it is here in this recipe. Bacon adds just enough flavor and saltiness to this recipe and I am able to make three children happy with one chowder recipe. Enough said. Add 1 Cup of Bacon Bits to the Corn kernels. In addition to the bacon bits, I minced 2 Garlic cloves. (The garlic is an optional ingredient to this recipe, but I happened to like it.)

Next Step: Soup Pot

Take a large Soup Pot and set on a Medium Heat Setting, Add ½ half cube of butter and pour the potato, celery, onion and carrot medley into the pot and cover the pot with a lid. Stir frequently and allow the veggies to soften over the course of 10-12 minutes. Add 1-Tablespoon of Montreal Steak Seasoning to the veggies and/or course Black Pepper. (Either or both works fine). As these veggies begin to soften, it’s time to add the other ingredients into the mix. Take the Corn, Bacon and Orange Pepper medley and add them into the pot. Stir frequently and generously.

Final Cooking Step: The Silk Factor

One of the “secret ingredients” in this recipe is using Silk, Coconut Milk. Not only does the Coconut Milk add a special flavor to this recipe; it adds more nutrition than regular dairy cream and more than half the calories. Part of my family commitment this year was to introduce more plant-based nutrition and make healthy recipes that taste great and add nutrition into their diet.

Now back to the chowder…

Take half your carton of Coconut milk and pour it into the pot of veggies. Stir slowly and make sure the Coconut milk is mixed well into the pot. Make sure your “milk line” is even with the “veggie line”. This means you have enough Coconut milk in the soup pot that it has covered all of the vegetables.  At this time, you can add the other half of the cube of butter and cover the pot with a lid. Keep on a Med/Low heat setting and bring the chowder to a simmer.

Allow to heat for another 12- 15 minutes and lower heat before serving.

Enjoy!