Black Girl Chef’s Whites

As you may remember I recently auditioned for Grill It! with Bobby Flay on the Food Network.  Surprisingly (NOT!!!) I received a very lovely form letter informing me that I was not chosen to appear on the show.  All I can say is…Phew!

Although I may not be Grill It! material, I know how to make a damn fine steak rub!  So instead of sharing it with America on The Food Network, I will  share it with you here on Black Girl Chef’s Whites.

Smoky and Spicy Steak Rub

½ cup kosher salt

¼ cup smoked paprika

2 TB granulated garlic

1 TB ground chipotle chile powder

1 TB ground ancho chile powder

1 TB ground cumin

1 TB dried Mexican oregano

1 TB dried thyme

In a small bowl mix all the spices and herbs together.  Store your rub in an airtight container, such as a jar or even a ziploc bag.  Makes 1 cup.

Although I made this for steak, this rub can be used on any number of things.  Try it on grilled vegetables, tofu, lamb, chicken or mixed into ground beef before forming into burgers.  If you like seafood try some on salmon, scallops or shrimp.  You can even mix some into a good quality store bought BBQ sauce to boost the flavor.

And don’t just save this for grilling season.  Bake, broil and saute with this rub to your hearts content!

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Meyer Lemon Tree

Life Happens…and it has been happening to me with a vengeance! In the past few weeks I threw my baby girl a 3rd birthday party, nursed her back to health after she got sick, then I got sick, then my mother got sick. But then my mother got sicker, and sicker and is now hospitalized.  She will recover, and is getting stronger every day, thank goodness!

But my other baby, Black Girl Chef’s Whites has been neglected.  I will be back with more of my original recipes soon, but for now I am re-posting a recipe for my fabulous pound cake, which is one of my mother’s favorite cakes to make and to eat.

Organic Meyer Lemons

Some may disagree with my rather opinionated title, but this really is a special pound cake.  I grew up eating this cake (and have the hips to prove it) and I have not tasted a more scrumptious pound cake.

Many years ago in Louisiana this pound cake recipe was handed down to my mother Vera Lee by her cousin Zephyr Stephens.  And years before it had been handed down to Zephyr.  And now it is mine.

Growing up in Pasadena, CA everyone had some sort of fruit tree in their yard.  We have Meyer lemons, so that is what I use to make the glaze for the cake.  Because Meyer lemons are sweeter and more floral than other lemons, it really makes a difference in the flavor of the cake.

The cake is called “Millionaires Pound Cake” and you can find variations on many recipe websites.  The common link seems to be that the recipe was passed down from one generation to the next.  If anyone knows the exact origin of the recipe I would love to know.

Best Pound Cake Ever

1  lb butter, room temperature

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs, room temperature

4 cups flour, sifted

3/4 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp lemon extract

Glaze

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice (any fresh lemon juice will work)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Butter and flour 16 cup angel food/pound cake style pan.

In electric mixer cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time, beat until incorporated.  Add flour and milk alternately, ending with the flour.  Add extracts, beat well, making sure to scrape down bowl as needed.

Pour batter into prepared pan, bake for 1 1/2 hours until pick inserted in cake comes out clean.  Cool in pan on rack for 30 minutes, then remove cake from pan.

Mix glaze ingredients and pour over the cake while still hot.

Let the cake cool (slightly at least) then devour.  And you will devour it…

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When I lived in New York, occasionally (OK, at least once a week) I would stop by my favorite pizza joint for a sausage roll.  Inside the dough would be Italian sausage, peppers, onion, pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese.  Think of it as a pizza slice rolled up on itself.  Now that I am back in California, you don’t find them as easily.  In fact, I don’t think I’ve had one since I got back!  Oh the horror!

When I began developing recipes for Foodbuzz Family Bites I thought about making a pizza roll.  But then that idea began to morph into something similar, yet distinctly different.  Since these were to be family friendly recipes, I needed to make something that would come together easily, but still be a meal your family would want again and again.

Newman’s Own, which sponsors Family Bites, was my starting point.  I was sent some product samples to develop recipes with, but the product I used for this recipe was one I bought myself.  I really like their Black Bean and Corn Salsa, and thought it would be very tasty in a baked roll.  So once again, my idea morphed and began to get a more “South of the Border” feel.

This is basically a four ingredient (not counting spices) recipe, and would be great to make with your kids.  Prefer ground beef? Use it.  Have some shredded chicken in the fridge? Use it. Vegetarian? Dice up some tofu, toss it with the spices, and follow the rest of the recipe.

If you’re having a cocktail party serve this and watch your guests gobble it up!  They taste great whether you’re 4 or 40.

Baked Mexi-Cal Turkey Roll

1 pound ground turkey

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

¼ tsp ground cumin

¼ tsp dried oregano

2 cans (8 ounce) refrigerated crescent roll seamless dough sheet

1 cup Newman’s Own Black Bean and Corn salsa

2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, cook the turkey, salt, red pepper, cumin and oregano until well browned. Cool slightly.
3. Spray 2 baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray. Unroll the crescent roll dough onto the baking sheets.
4. Spoon half the turkey lengthwise on the dough sheet, placing it towards one edge.  Spoon ½ cup Newman’s Own Black Bean and Corn Salsa down the length of the turkey, then top with 1 cup of cheese.  Repeat layering on the other dough sheet.
5. Carefully fold the dough over the filling, tucking the edge under.  Press down on the ends to seal them, and tuck the sealed ends under.
6. Bake the rolls for 20 minutes, until golden brown.  Slice and serve with additional salsa for dipping.

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Honey Mustard Pork Salad

Recently I was honored that my blog was chosen to be featured on the Foodbuzz website Family Bites page, presented by Newman’s Own. If you are unfamiliar with Newman’s Own products, the company was started by the late Paul Newman in 1982.  All profits are given to charity, so not only are you buying a high quality product you are giving back to those who need help.

I developed nine original recipes using Newman’s Own products, all designed to be family friendly and uncomplicated.  But uncomplicated does not mean it should not taste great.

This recipe has only a few ingredients, but is packed with flavor.  If you do not eat pork, you can substitute with chicken or turkey cutlets.

Please visit the Foodbuzz Family Bites page to see more recipes.

Honey Mustard Pork Salad

1 pork tenderloin

1/3 cup Newman’s own Light Honey Mustard dressing

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 bags (7 ounces) butter lettuce and radicchio blend

1 package (5 ounce) crumbled feta cheese

1 package cherry tomatoes

1. In a large bowl or re-sealable plastic bag marinate the pork for at least one hour in the dressing.  When ready to cook heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large oven proof skillet. Brown the tenderloin on all sides, then finish cooking it in the oven for 20 – 25 minutes.  Let the tenderloin rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing thinly.
3. Divide the lettuce among four plates.  Sprinkle ¼ cup of feta cheese and some cherry tomatoes over the lettuce on each plate.  Divide the pork slices among the plates, fanning them out.
4. Drizzle each salad with Newman’s Own Light Honey Mustard dressing and serve immediately.

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It seems like I have picked at least a hundred pounds of Meyer lemons off my trees, yet every time I look at them they are still loaded with fruit! I’m not complaining about it though.  I love these lemons, and their versatility.  Their scent is floral,  sweet and totally intoxicating.  Their taste is sublime.  Just like I did as a child, my daughter will eat them right off the tree.  I love my lemons.

But what to do with my abundance of lemons?  Lemon curd, preserved lemons, cookies, cakes, lemonade, etc. etc. etc.!  All good choices, but I wanted to think outside of the box.  As I was walking into my house I passed my little jalapeno bush.  It is a scraggly, gnarled little plant that always seems to have jalapenos on it!  I don’t feed it, barely water it, but it keeps giving me peppers. Having a toddler preschool aged child, I don’t cook with them as often as I would like, as my daughter tends to yell “Too spicy mommy!”  So I keep the hot sauce and peppers at a minimum these days.

It’s time for those jalapenos to be shown some respect, so I came up with a recipe that features them alongside my beloved lemons.  This lemon and jalapeno relish is a great compliment to fish, chicken or pork.  It can also be spooned over grilled or roasted vegetables.  The fresh citrus bite, along with heat of the jalapeno really brightens flavor.

Organic Meyer Lemon and Jalapeno Relish

1 1/2 TB finely grated Meyer lemon zest

2 small jalapenos, extra small dice

2 TB pine nuts

2 TB lemon olive oil

1 tsp Za’atar spice*

1/2 tsp sea salt

juice of one Meyer lemon

In the picture below you can see how fine the zest is grated, and how small the jalapenos are diced.  This is important so your mouth is not overwhelmed by either the citrus or the heat of the pepper.  If you do not have a microplane zester, chop the lemon zest as fine as you can with a knife.

I call for a lemon olive oil, but the actual oil I used is a specialty olive oil from O & Co that is flavored with clementines and lemons.  The citrus flavor is so intense and fresh, and is an excellent drizzling oil.

In a small bowl, combine the zest, diced jalapenos, olive oil, Za’atar spice, salt and lemon juice.

In a small skillet over a medium high flame, toast the pine nuts.

Pine nuts can go from raw to burned seemingly at the speed of light, so be careful while toasting them.  I know how quickly they can burn, and I still burned the first batch!  Do Not Walk Away From The Stove While Toasting Pine Nuts!

Let the pine nuts cool, then add them to the relish.  At this point let the relish sit for a couple of hours to let the flavors meld.  The relish is best eaten within a couple of days, so make it when you know you will use it.  I sauteed a salmon fillet, and spooned the relish over it.  Very tasty, indeed!

*Za’atar spice can be found at Middle Eastern markets, or ordered online at Vanns Spices.  You can also make your own from recipes found online, such as this one from About.com.

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The Superbowl is just around the corner, and recipes are starting to appear everywhere.  I am in the Featured Publisher program at Foodbuzz, and the “flavor” of the month is Superbowl, sponsored by Pace Picante Sauce.  My family are big Pace Picante fans, so much so that I buy the industrial size vat from Costco.  So when Foodbuzz asked if I was interested in receiving a free sample of product from Pace as part of the Tastemaker program, I jumped on it.

I am not a big sports fan, so to be honest Superbowl Sunday is just another day.  Now, my late father was such a huge sports fan he would have the picture in picture watching two games on the TV, and then have another on the radio at the same time!  And he would be reading the sports page too!  So this recipe is for him…and all the other football loving fans in the world.

I wanted to make something a bit different, but that would fit on a Superbowl Party spread.  Pizza, potato skins, tacos, chicken wings and chips and guacamole are all commonly found at Superbowl parties across the USA.  As opposed to carne asada or carnitas, I decided to make a Mexican spiced braised oxtail, which could then be de-boned and shredded, and the succulent meat used for tacos, burritos, enchiladas, nachos or whatever you want. If you would like an oxtail recipe using more traditional spices, see my previous post for Braised Oxtails.

Mexican Spiced Oxtails

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp dark chili powder

1 tsp dried oregano, preferably Mexican

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground chipotle chile powder

2 1/2 lbs oxtails

1 TB olive oil

1 cup mild Pace Picante Sauce

3 cups low sodium chicken broth

In a small bowl combine all the spices. Rub the oxtails with the spice mixture, and let them marinate for at least six hours.  I did mine overnight to really let the flavor penetrate.

In a large, heavy pan heat the olive oil.  Brown the oxtails well on all sides, including the fat. Oxtails have a generous fat cap on them. I do not remove it as the fat adds flavor to the broth.  The fat can be skimmed after cooking.

Be sure not to crowd the pan, so the oxtails get good caramelization, which you want for flavor, along with the fat.  Once all sides are browned, remove the oxtails from the pan.  Add the Pace Picante Sauce and the chicken broth, scraping the bottom of the pan to get all the caramelized bits off the bottom.  Return the oxtails to the pan, bring the liquid to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer.

Leave the oxtails alone and go do something else. Really.  No peeking, no prodding, so stirring!  Do not lift that lid for at least one hour, then turn the oxtails over and leave them alone again.  After the second hour, test the tenderness of the oxtails with a fork, and see if the meat has begun to pull away from the bone.  It will take between 2 – 3 1/2 hours for the oxtails to become tender and succulent.  The picture below shows how much the meat shrinks from the bone when the oxtails are done.

Remove the oxtails for the pan and let them cool.  When cool enough to handle, pull the meat from the bone and shred it.  The bones can be wrapped and frozen to make stock, or given to a happy puppy like our neighbor’s rottweiler Alice.

At this point you can use the meat as a filling for any number of dishes.  Serve it at your Superbowl party with warmed tortillas, grated cheese, avocado slices, guacamole, diced red onion, shredded lettuce, lime wedges and Pace Picante Sauce, of course!

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I love winter in Southern California.  The weather changes (it’s 78 degrees right now instead of 101 degrees) and the citrus trees are loaded with fruit.  I am lucky to have two Meyer lemon trees in my front yard, and those little trees produce an abundance of fruit. Twice a year actually.  I love those trees. They are only about 6 feet tall, but give me pounds and pound of lemons each year.

Meyer Lemon Tree

A Meyer lemon is a cross between a lemon and an orange, and originated in China.  When you smell them they are redolent of flowers and honey.  Their color when fully ripe is almost golden, like a sunset.  The skin is very thin, and while the flesh is tart, it is more sweet than a regular lemon.  As a child I used to pick them right off the tree and eat them while sitting on my front porch.  Now my toddler does the same.

There is a multitude of things you can do with the Meyer lemon.  The Los Angeles Times published a great article a couple of years ago called “100 things to do with a Meyer lemon.” I haven’t done them all, but I’m working on it!  One of my favorite things to do with my lemons is make lemon curd.  The flavor of Meyer lemon curd is so sublime, so intoxicating, so delectable. The best thing is that it’s easy to make, and is a wonderful gift to give to friends.

Organic Meyer Lemons

Organic Meyer Lemon Curd

Ingredients:

8 large egg yolks

4 large eggs

1 cup of sugar

1 cup organic Meyer lemon juice

1 stick (8 TB) cold butter, cut into small pieces

Directions:

Fill a medium saucepan or double boiler about 1/3 – 1/2 full with water.  Bring the water to a boil, then lower to a simmer.  Have a large bowl of ice water ready to cool the curd.

While the water is coming to a boil, whisk the yolks, eggs, sugar and lemon juice in a metal bowl large enough to sit on the saucepan without falling in. Place the bowl over the simmering water, making sure the bottom doesn’t touch the water.  Whisking frequently, cook the mixture until thick, about 10 minutes.  If the mixture seems to be cooking too quickly, remove the bowl from the saucepan and whisk briskly, then return to the saucepan.  Remember, you are working with eggs, so if it gets too hot you will make lemon scrambled eggs!

When the curd is thickened, place the bowl in the waiting bowl of ice water.  Whisk in a few small pieces of butter at a time, waiting until they have melted until adding more.  Strain the curd through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl.  Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the curd to prevent a skin.  Refrigerate until completely cool.

I have been known to eat it my the spoonful, but drizzling it over pound cake, berries, or using it as a cake filing are all great ideas.  But I do recommend eating it by the spoonful…

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Sweet Potato Pie Gooey Bars

I’m a cereal fan.  I can eat it for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Although Captain Crunch will always hold a place deep in my heart, I have tried to find cereals more suited to my adult needs. But that does not mean I want to eat a cereal that I feel is better suited to the horses in the stable down the street.

I recently got a new cereal from Nature’s Path Organic called Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch, and as soon as I took the first bite I started thinking  of what I could make with it.  The maple, cinnamon and pecan flavor reminded me of something, but I could not put my finger on it. Then I realized it would pair well with sweet potatoes.

A sweet potato pie! But I don’t really like sweet potato pie.  Next!

A sweet potato pudding with a cereal crust.  I don’t know… kind of strange.

Sweet potato cheesecake… no sweet potato cheesecake bars!  That’s it!  Well, that wasn’t quite it.  Somewhere along the way my cheesecake bars turned into gooey bars.  But the flavor was so good, and the creamy, gooey texture was nice too.  Not cheesecake, but I liked it.

The great thing about this dessert is that you can use leftover roasted sweet potatoes, if you have them.  In fact, I would recommend roasting your potatoes instead of boiling them for better flavor when making these.

Sweet Potato Pie Gooey Bars

1 1/2 cups Nature’s Path Organic Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 stick of butter, melted

1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, slightly softened

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

3 cups cooked sweet potato, about 4 small

2 TB light brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground allspice

pecan halves (optional)

Crust

Graham cracker crumbs and maple-pecan cereal

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Place the cereal into a thick plastic zip top bag.  Crush the cereal with a rolling pin, or other heavy object.  Do not make the crumbs as fine as the graham cracker crumbs, but leave them a little bigger for added texture in the crust.

Maple-Pecan cereal ready to be crushed

In a medium bowl combine the cereal, graham cracker crumbs and sugar.

Graham cracker crumbs, maple-pecan cereal and sugar

Pour the melted butter over the dry ingredients and mix well until moistened.  The crumbs should hold together when you pinch them.  Coat a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.  Press the crumbs into the pan, making an even crust.  Bake the crust for 6-8 minutes, until crisp and slightly browned.  Let the crust cool completely.

Baked crust

Sweet Potato Pie Topping

While the crust is cooling, beat the cream cheese until smooth in a food processor.  I used a food processor because sweet potatoes often are stringy, and wanted to make sure my batter was smooth.

Cream cheese, sweet potato and sweetened condensed milk

Add the sweetened condensed milk and beat until incorporated.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the sweet potato, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and allspice. Beat until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed.

Sweet potato topping

Pour the topping onto the cooled crust. Using a spatula spread the topping out to the edges of the crust.

Sweet potato topping on crust

Sweet potato topping swirled on crust

At this point you can place it in the refrigerator to firm up, or decorate it with the pecan halves.  I used the pecan halves to mark the area to cut the bars.  These are very rich, so I made decided to make them small.

Pecan halves on topping

These bars need to chill for at least 8 hours to overnight.  Once completely chilled the topping is still soft, but will hold it’s shape when cut.  But don’t attempt to pick them up with your fingers to eat them. Which is what my sister Karen called to inform me after I gave her some.

Karen: “They taste really good, but they don’t seem very cheesecakey to me. When I picked it up it broke apart, so I had to lick my fingers.”

Me:  “That’s why they are called gooey bars, not cheesecake bars.”

Whatever they are, I hope you make them and enjoy them.

Sweet Potato Pie Gooey Bars

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How many of you have stuffed and roasted a big, beautiful turkey only to have it come out dry and tasteless?  You know…when you ask how it is and everyone just smiles and nods while chewing as hard as they can.  You see them try and swallow that big lump of dry poultry, hoping they don’t choke and you have to give them the Heimlich.  Yeah, been there…

So what’s the big secret?  Butter. And to make it really special, a compound or seasoned butter.  What is a compound butter, you say?  A compound butter is a butter that is seasoned with herbs and spices.  You can use fresh or dried herbs, citrus zest, aromatic vegetables such as onion and garlic and your favorite spices.  The great thing about a compound butter is that you can add any flavor profile you want.

Seasoned butters are easy to make, and add so much flavor to any number of dishes.  I usually make a large amount and freeze it, then slice off what I need as I need it.  This recipe makes a pound of seasoned butter, but smaller amounts are just as easy to make. I used a food processor for this, but only because I was using a lot of fresh herbs, was in a lazy mood and did not feel like chopping the herbs by hand.  If you are doing a butter with just dried herbs or spices, its easy to make it by hand.

My friend Holland has a wonderful herb garden and she was cutting the last of her summer herbs.  I got a huge variety of herbs; lemon basil, thyme, rosemary, two types of oregano, savory, sweet basil and lemon thyme.  My car smelled so good when I drove home!  She lives close to me, so I almost took a detour just so I could keep that incredible fragrance in my car!

Assorted fresh herbs

With the holidays right around the corner I knew those herbs would make some great compound butter.

The key to a compound butter is to make sure your butter is softened.  Not melted, just softened.  You want all the ingredients you are using to be evenly distributed in the butter.  Be flexible with your ingredients, and don’t worry about exact measuring.  Add a little of this, a little of that and TASTE! Then adjust your ingredients as needed. I have included approximate measurements so you have a basic idea of the amounts needed to make a good seasoned butter.

Fresh Herb Compound Butter

About 1 cup fresh herbs of your choice, such as thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil

1 lb butter, softened

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Strip the leaves of your herbs from the stem, and place them into the bowl of a food processor.  The thyme I used was so tender and fresh the stems were not woody, so I didn’t worry if I got a bit of stem in the processor.  But if the stem is woody, be sure to strip the leaves off.  You can keep the stems for seasoning stocks if you wish.  Just wrap them tightly and throw them in the freezer.

Fresh herbs in processor

Chop the herbs roughly in the processor.  Add the butter and process until smooth.  You will have to stop the processor a few times, and scrape down the sides.

Roughly chopped herbs and butter in processor

The butter will be soft and smooth when done.

Finished butter in processor

Place a piece of parchment paper on a flat surface. If you don’t have parchment, use wax paper.  Scrape the butter out of the bowl, and put it in the bottom 1/3 of your parchment.  I used a rolled parchment, so I needed to weight it down to stop it from rolling back up on me.  That is why you see my pepper grinder in the picture.

Finished butter ready to be rolled in parchment paper

Fold the short end of the parchment over the butter tightly, and begin smoothing the butter out while shaping it into a log.  Press firmly but gently on the parchment so any air bubbles are smoothed out.  Pull back on the parchment that is folded over the butter to tighten and compress the butter.

Shaping butter into a roll in parchment paper

Roll the butter up completely in the parchment paper, and fold the ends to close it.  If it’s not perfectly round, don’t worry!  It will still taste good, and that’s whats important.  The cylindrical shape just makes it easier to cut when it is frozen.  Kind of like a tube of cookie dough.

Butter rolled up in parchment paper

Place the roll in the refrigerator to firm the butter up, and it is ready to use.  If you wish to freeze it, wrap it in a couple layers of plastic wrap. When you want to use it, just unwrap the frozen butter, and cut off slices with a sharp knife.  Then re-wrap and put it back in the freezer.

To make your Thanksgiving turkey moist and flavorful, rub your compound butter all over your turkey.  Lift the skin of the turkey and rub some butter directly on the meat, especially the breast area.  I even rub the inside of my turkey before I place my aromatic vegetables in the cavity. Then roast your turkey slowly in a 200 – 250 degree oven, basting often with the drippings.

You can use the butter for flavoring other dishes too.

• Melt the butter over pasta, add some grated parmesan cheese and toss
• Place a teaspoon or so of butter on top of baked or grilled chicken breast or salmon
• Place a tablespoon or so on a grilled or broiled steak
• Melt some butter on your steamed or sauteed vegetables for extra flavor
• Use a seasoned butter to make garlic bread

Whatever you make with your butter, enjoy it and be sure to experiment with different flavors.

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Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

Summer has come and gone, and fall is upon us.  I love fall, when the weather gets cool and crisp.  Well, since I am back in Southern California, I’ll use my memories of life in NYC for the temperature.  My neighborhood does have a lot of trees that change color and lose their foliage, so while it may be 80 degrees, the red and yellow leaves begin falling gently to the ground.  The squirrels scurry about burying acorns, only to forget where they hid them. Yes they’re rodents, but they are cute rodents!

The bounty of produce in summer includes some of my favorite fruits and vegetables, but fall has it’s own luscious bounty.  Winter squashes, all sorts of potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, chard, apples, pears, persimmons, quince, pumpkins…too many to name here.

When a cold spell hit, for all of two days, I wanted something warm and comforting in my belly.  I had just made 8 quarts of chicken stock the previous weekend, so soup came to mind.  In my freezer was a giant Costco size bag of organic corn. Oh yes…corn chowder.  If it was still summer I would have used fresh corn, but frozen works just as well.  But in the interest of doing something different I decided to try using sweet potatoes instead of the usual white potatoes for my chowder.  Salty bacon, sweet potatoes and corn…yeah that would work.  At least I hoped it would, since I was developing this recipe for the first time.

Lucky for me and you too, it turned out to be rich and scrumptious.

Chowder Ingredient Still Life

Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

5 slices bacon, thinly sliced

4 TB butter

1 medium onion, small dice

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 medium sweet potatoes (yams), small dice

2 quarts chicken stock

1 large sprig fresh thyme

6 cups corn kernels, thawed if frozen

1 cup milk, half and half or cream

In a large stock pot over medium high heat, saute the bacon until crispy.  Remove and reserve the bacon.  Melt the butter in the rendered bacon fat, then add the onions. Cook about 5 minutes, until the onions have softened.  Stirring constantly, add the flour, salt and pepper.  Cook for 2-3 minutes, until lightly golden.  This is a basic roux, which will help thicken your soup.

Browning Roux

Add the sweet potatoes, and stir about 1 minute, until they are covered in the roux.  The mixture should be fairly dry at this point, as the flour will have absorbed the fat.

Sweet Potatoes and Onions in Roux

Add the stock and thyme sprig, stirring well to mix all the ingredients together.  Don’t worry about removing the leaves from the thyme sprig, as they will come off as the soup cooks. When the soup is done you can remove the bare twig, as that is NOT edible. Bring the stock to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Cook for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are soft.

Thyme Sprig in Stock

Add the corn kernels and cook about 10 minutes for the flavors to meld. Turn off the heat, then stir in the milk, half and half or cream. If you want the soup to be very rich use cream.  I used milk and it was still delicious.

Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

Serve your soup with crusty bread and a nice glass of wine.  OK, you don’t have to have the wine, but I sure enjoyed mine!

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