It got really cold here yesterday (Monday). It was raining and blustery. The perfect soup day. I had been wanting to cook this Cheddar & Corn Chowder for a really long time and I decided it was the perfect day!
Normally I make this Corn Chowder Recipe. It is one that I have been making for years and years and years. It is the recipe my children grew up on. I used to make it every Sunday after church. It was and is a real family favourite!
Another one which we make and really like is this Chicken & Corn Chowder Recipe. I've been making that one for years also. I got the recipe out of one of those little cookbook magazines you used to be able to find buy next to the til's at the Grocery store. Its a real winner!
This Cheddar & Corn Chowder recipe is a bonafide true winning recipe however. I clipped it out of a magazine many years ago. I am afraid I don't know which magazine however as I only clipped the recipe and not the page, so there is no telling for sure . . .
I only know for sure that it was a Canadian magazine because the measurements were in both cup measurements and metric measurements.
I have a strong suspicion that it was Canadian Living. This recipe got a second prize in a Favourite Family Supper Contest. I have had it sitting in my binder for many years, and had never made it.
I made a promise to myself that this year I was going to try to use the recipes that I have collected and then share them (if they are any good) and then get rid of the paper. What is the point of keeping things you are not using? No point, that's what. It is only taking up space.
One day it will all end up in the bin anyways, as it probably only has value to me. I don't want to leave a mess for someone else to clean up and so I am trying to use as many of them as I can! I will only ever be able to touch the tip of the recipe ice-berg however as I have been very prolific and very good at collecting them through the years!
Back to the soup . . . this is a true winner. No wonder . . . its delicious! Simple to make as well.
It also uses ingredients you probably have in your kitchen already . . . onions, potato, frozen corn, butter, flour, milk . . .
It is flavoured with bay leaf and cumin seed. I like to bruise the cumin seed to release their flavours and I also break the bay leaf in two. This also helps to release its flavours. Trust me, you will notice a huge difference in just doing this. It also used fresh chives. I had none, so I used dry and it was still fabulous!
I used a really good cheddar in this . . . an old one, sharp flavoured . . . aged . . . with plenty of calcium crystals in it. You get more taste bang for your buck when you use a good OLD cheddar. You will find a little bit goes a very long way.
Yield: 4 - 6
Cheddar & Corn Chowder
Use extra strong cheddar cheese to give this hearty chowder a special zip! this is a prize winning recipe, so you know it is delicious.
ingredients:
- 3 TBS butter
- 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 bay leaf, broken in half to release the oils
- 1/2 tsp whole cumin seeds, bruised
- 1/4 tsp dried sage
- 3 TBS plain flour
- 480ml chicken stock
- 300ml light cream or milk (1 1/4 cups)
- 225g frozen corn niblets (1 1/2 cups)
- 2 TBS chopped fresh parsley
- 2 TBS chopped fresh chives
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 60ml dry white wine (1/4 cup)
- 200g grated strong cheddar cheese (2 cups) plus more to sprinkle
- salt and black pepper to taste
instructions:
How to cook Cheddar & Corn Chowder
- Melt the butter in a saucepan with a heavy bottom. Add the onion, potato, broken bay leaf, cumin seed and sage. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the onion is softened without browning. Stir in the flour. Cook and stir for about 2 minutes. Don't let it brown.
- Whisk in the stock and the milk. Bring to the boil, whisking constantly until smooth. Reduce to medium low and simmer, stirring often for about 30 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the corn, parsley, chives, nutmeg and wine. Simmer for a further 5 to 6 minutes until heated through. Discard the bay leaf. Stir in the cheese and heat over low heat, just to melt the cheese. Don't let the soup boil. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and black pepper. Serve hot, ladled into heated bowls with a spoonful of cheddar sprinkled over top of each.
I made Todd some cheesy toasts to enjoy with his. I had the cheese straws . . . I just love something crunchy with my soups. I think it is the Canadian in me! Anyways, you are going to love LOVE this Cheddar & Corn Chowder. Its fabulously tasty! Quick, easy and delicious. YUM!!!
Up Tomorrow: Stacked Turkey Mexi-Melts
My Todd just adores King Prawns. Its not something he gets to eat very often as I am allergic to them, but when I do cook them for him, he feels really, really special!
A few months back we had received a beautiful box of fish from Seafresh Quality Foods.
Seafresh is an on line fish monger, which sells quality fish, seafood,
poultry and meat. I was incredibly impressed with both
their product and their delivery service! There was absolutely nothing
that I could fault with any of it. Feel free to read about my experience here.
Included in the box was a bag of beautiful large uncooked King Prawns. Their prawns are individually quick frozen so that you can take out as
many or as little as you want, which makes them very handy to use and
ideal for whatever size family you have. They are also shelled and
de-veined at the source, so you can just cook them without any messing
about.
I remember when I worked at the Manor, they loved their prawns and would eat masses of them. I would have to shell and clean them. It was fiddly and time consuming.
Another thing Todd really enjoys is a good curry. I don't cook them near often enough either. I really should cook them more often. He likes them really spicy. I prefer them on the mild side.
I had been saving some of the King Prawns to cook him a special meal on his birthday. Something he would really enjoy and all just for him. Curry Coconut King Prawns.
I adapted the recipe from a book my ex boss gave me when I was working for her entitled, Fresh Every Day, More Great Recipes From Foster's Market, by Sara Foster. I love this book. It is full of lovely, do-able recipes. I used to use it a lot when I worked at the Manor as my boss liked this kind of food, and I have referred to it many times since. Its just a good good cook book.
I decided to use the recipe in the book for the Curry Coconut King Prawns because I knew I would be unable to taste the finished dish myself, and I trust Sara Foster's recipes and culinary intuition as far as what tastes good.
It was a simple recipe. You need only to soften some onion until translucent and then begin cooking the prawns. You do this in batches, cooking them first on one side and then on the other.
You need only cook them until they are pink on each side. DON'T over cook them! Overcooked prawns have a rubbery texture that is not very nice.
Once you have cooked them, you scoop them out and hold them, covered lightly with some foil in a bowl while you make the sauce. The sauce is also very simple. Just coconut milk, stock, dry sherry, curry powder and garlic.
This gets reduced and then you stir the prawns, onions and their juices back into the sauce and heat through briefly along with a handful of chopped fresh coriander, and you're done! A garnish of fresh minced spring onions and Bob's your Uncle. You have a delicious curry all ready for the people you love to enjoy along with some rice or whatever it is they enjoy with curries! Easy peasy and according to Todd, most delicious!
Yield: 4 - 6
Curry Coconut King Prawns
The perfect supper for when the nights are beginning to draw in and you begin to crave richer foods. Quick, easy and delicious.
ingredients:
- 3 TBS olive oil
- 1 small onion, peeled and minced
- 1 1/2 pounds king prawns, peeled and deveined
- salt and pepper
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 (1-inch) piece of fresh ginger, julienned (about 2 TBS)
- 120ml dry sherry (1/2 cup)
- 240ml unsweetened coconut milk (1 cup)
- 240ml chicken or fish stock (1 cup)
- a handful of chopped fresh coriander leaf (cilantro)
- 2 spring onions, trimmed and minced
instructions:
How to cook Curry Coconut King Prawns
- Heat half of the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook over medium high heat until soft and translucent without browning. Add half of the prawns, season with salt and pepper. Saute for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes per side until pink. Remove the prawns from the pan, reserving the onion and pan juices. Place on a serving platter and loosely tent with foil and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining prawns and oil.
- Stir the curry powder, garlic and ginger into the pan you cooked the shrimp in. Saute for a minute. Add the sherry and cook for a minute longer, scraping up any brown bits. Add the coconut milk and broth. Bring to the boil. Reduce the temperature to a low boil and cook for 10 to 12 minutes until the sauce thickens and reduces by two thirds. Return the prawns to the pan and cook for a further minute to heat through and coat the prawns with the sauce. Remove from the heat, scatter with the coriander and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine. Garnish with the minced spring onions and serve.
Todd felt really spoilt when I served this up to him. He was licking his chops big-time!
A few things about Seafresh:
- Same Day dispatch on orders received before 1 PM.
- All packages are carefully hand packed.
- Free delivery on orders above £50, £8 on orders below that amount.
- Responsibly and sustainably sourced.
- Air Blast Frozen at source within 4 hours of being caught.
- Wide variety to choose from.
Follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Note - Although I was gifted with product free of charge for the purposes of review, I was not required to write a positive review in exchange, nor would my integrity allow me to recommend anything if I did not truly like it. Any and all my opinions are my own entirely.
Up Tomorrow: Cheddar & Corn Chowder
For the most part I try to keep my carb consumption down to the minimum. As a Diabetic I know that is what is best for me. This isn't easy considering the fact that I have spent most of my life as a die hard carboholic! But it is what it is.
We do need some carbs as they are what gives us energy, but I am much
more picky now at how I get them and how many I eat, and what kinds of carbs I
choose to eat. If you switch from white to whole wheat that is a change for the better. When in doubt up the fibre, which helps you to process any sugars better.
The potato is my favourite vegetable however, and every so often I just
need to feed that craving I have for a potato. When I do I use new
potatoes, as they are lower GI than old potatoes. I bake rather than
fry . . . . and I keep the skins on them for added fibre.
These easy oven chips have seeds added to them with also increases the fibre and makes them a bit more diabetic friendly.
I like to cut my potatoes about the size of my index finger. Todd likes them more chunkier, but I like them thinner. I'm the cook, so in this case I win.
As this is a rare treat for me, I am having them MY way! And who can blame me!
I wash them really well, leave the skins on and chip them into finger sized chips and then I toss them together in a bowl with an assortment of goodies!
A bit of olive oil . . . dehydrated onion and garlic flakes . . . white and black sesame seeds, poppy seeds, some flaked sea salt, ground black pepper and paprika. You can use hot or sweet paprika. Its up to you.
Once you have them all tossed together, just spread them out onto a paper lined baking sheet and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes until they are crisp and golden brown. You can give them a stir once or twice for good measure.
I buy no salt, no sugar ketchup these days. At first I didn't like it, but once I got used to it I have come to love it and find the regular stuff too sweet and too salty. You can use regular ketchup if that is what you are used to. I also make my own mayonnaise these days, but again, use whatever you like. Hellman's is good. Just sayin'
I get a little British and add some vinegar. Not Malt Vinegar however . . . Apple Cider vinegar, because its good for you, and a touch of black pepper for some heat and some paprika also . . .
Just whisk it all together and let it sit until your fries are ready . . .
This is a heavenly combination and a real treat for this old gal! I don't even need anything else on my plate! I could be happy with just this, which makes them great for game nights! Football season is here after all!
Yield: 4
Dirty Fries & Fry Sauce
How can something so simple taste so good. These are fabulously easy and fabulously tasty!
ingredients:
For the sauce:
- 110g good quality mayonnaise (1/2 cup)
- 3 TBS Ketchup
- pinch salt
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- pinch paprika
For the fries:
- 2 pounds potatoes, washed, dried, unpeeled
- 2 TBS light olive oil
- 1/2 tsp garlic flakes
- 1 tsp onion flakes
- 1 1/2 tsp black sesame seeds
- 1 1/2 TBS regular sesame seeds
- 1 tsp poppy seeds
- 1/2 tsp flaked sea salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp paprika
instructions:
How to cook Dirty Fries & Fry Sauce
- Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Set aside.
- Cut the potatoes into chips about the size of your index finger. No need to peel, unless you want to. We like the add fibre and flavour that the skins add. Put your chipped potatoes into a bowl and then add the oil, and remaining seeds and seasonings. Toss together well and then scatter across the baking tray evenly.
- Roast in the heated oven, giving them a stir every now and then, until golden brown and crispy edged. This will take between 25 and 30 minutes.
- While the chips are cooking whisk together all of the ingredients for the fry sauce to combine well, and give the flavours some time to meld.
- Serve the hot chips along with the sauce for dipping! Delicious!
I really hope you will give them a go. Its nice to enjoy a little bit of something like this every now and then. A treat like this once in a while keeps me happy.
Up tomorrow: Curry Coconut King Prawns
Another one of my husband's favourite things are Gingernut Biscuits, or cookies as they are known in North America. Crisp and buttery and filled with the warmth of ginger.
You can buy them in the shops and those are quite nice, but Todd prefers it when I bake them from scratch. The ones in the shops are a bit too hard for his liking. His 81 year old noshers have a bit of a difficult time coping with them.
And to be honest, I am not fond of really hard things these days either. When you get older the chance of breaking a tooth eating something hard increases. Yes, you can dunk them in hot drinks, which will render them nice and soft, but I confess . . . I am not a real hot drink lover.
Neither am I photographer! ha ha My friend Monique sent me this lovely presentation box for cupcakes or biscuits a long time ago. I save it for special occasions. I thought I would dig it out today and do some nice photos with it.
Presentation is clearly not my forte, but I do try . . . besides this is about the cookies is it not?
I do love that little Patisserie Shop box though . . . I do, I do, I do, I do, I do . . .
These cookies are put together a bit differently than most. You sift the flour, soda and salt together, along with the powdered ginger and mixed spice. Mixed spice is a warm baking spice mixture that you can buy over here. It is flavoured with cinnamon, coriander, ginger and cloves. Its used a lot in British baking. You can find my recipe to make your own here. Its very easy and you will find it comes in very handy
Once you have all of the dry ingredients sifted together, you stir in a quantity of brown sugar . . .
After that you drop in butter, which you have cut into bits and you rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs . . .
Finally you mix together some boiling water and golden syrup (you could also use corn syrup or maple syrup, or even honey if you wanted to). You mix it together until the golden syrup melts into the water . . . after which you stir it into the dry ingredients with a round bladed knife to make a soft dough. That's it!
No eggs, no milk. Roll the dough into balls, place onto a paper lined baking sheet, press lightly down a tiny bit with your fingers and bake . . . until they are set, and golden brown, crisp edged and scrumdiddlyumptious! These smell heavenly when they are baking.
Yield: makes about 50
Gingernuts
You can store these in an airtight container for up to 5 days. If you like you can whisk together an icing and spread it over top by whisking together 60g (1/2 cup) icing sugar with 1 TBS of soft butter and 2 to 3 tsp of lemon juice until smooth. Allow to set before storing.
ingredients:
- 280g plain flour (2 cups)
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 1 TBS ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp mixed spice
- 125g butter chopped into bits (1/2 cup)
- 200g soft light brown sugar (1 cup, lightly packed)
- 60ml boiling water (1/4 cup)
- 1 TBS golden syrup
instructions:
How to cook Gingernuts
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a couple of baking sheets with baking parchment. Set aside.
- Sift the flour, soda, ginger and mixed spice into a bowl. Stir in the brown sugar. Drop in the butter and rub together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs. Mix together the boiling water and golden syrup until the syrup melts. Add to the flour mixture to mix to a soft dough with a round bladed knife. Roll into balls using 2 heaped tablespoons of the mixture at a time Place on the baking trays, at least 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly with your fingertips. Bake for 15 minutes, or until well coloured and firm. Leave to cool on the baking trays for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat until all have been baked.
- Store in an airtight container.
You can of course, ice these with a lemon icing, but I don't bother. We love them just as they are! Do note, it is possible to cut the recipe in half successfully. I do that all the time as there are only two of us in this house and I shouldn't be eating sweets. ♥
Up Tomorrow: Dirty Fries with Fry Sauce
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