Bringing all of summer’s sweetest and freshest produce together in a tasty, refreshing, and not too heavy chowder topped off with just a little decadent breaded goat cheese crouton!
Just when we were getting used to the heat, a rash of storms (leftovers from Isaias, coming up from the coast) have come through Virginia, dumped a ton of rain on us, and dropped the temperatures to the low seventies in the evenings.
Still warm. Still summery. But just enough to make me break out of the grilling rut we’ve gotten into and make some hot but refreshing summery chowder. I was craving a little bit of veggie soup goodness, and when our farmer’s market had several types of fresh sweet corn to choose from, I had to pick up a ton and incorporate it.
And lately, you guys, my backyard has had all of this action going on.
Tomatoes for days, you guys. Despite unending battles against caterpillars and moths and tobacco worms (seriously, you guys, just look at these creepers and remember, they’re five inches long! I may have shrieked the first time I had to get rid of one of these demonspawn), my tomatoes are doing great and making tons and tons of beautiful fruit.
I’ve been making a lot of marinara, roasting them, chopping them fresh over pasta, and I had to chop up a couple and throw them into this chowder as well. It makes for a great mix of sweet and savory and is brothy enough for summer.
The best addition I made was to borrow these breaded goat cheese rounds from my beet salad and just throw a couple of them on top of each bowl. They pick up all the goodness from the broth and the tomato and the corn and the seasonings and melt just enough.
Just yum.
[lt_recipe name=”Tomato Corn Chowder with Crispy Goat Cheese” summary=”Bringing all of summer’s sweetest and freshest produce together in a tasty, refreshing, and not too heavy chowder topped off with just a little decadent breaded goat cheese crouton!” servings=”6″ total_time=”45M” print=”yes” image=”https://homefrontcooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Tomato-Corn-Chowder-1177.jpg” ingredients=”For the soup:;1 tbsp olive oil;1 small sweet onion, diced;2 garlic cloves, minced;1/2 tsp salt;1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper;1/2 tsp smoked paprika;1/4 cup chopped tomatoes;2 cups corn kernels;1 1/2 cups chopped yukon gold potatoes;3 1/2 cups chicken stock;1/4 cup heavy cream;1 tbsp flour;1/4 cup chopped fresh chives;For the goat cheese:;1 cup panko bread crumbs;8 oz fresh goat cheese;2 medium eggs, beaten;salt and pepper to taste;1 cup vegetable oil” ]Slice the goat cheese into small rounds until you have about 10 pieces. Form them into rounds and press any stray bits back in with your fingers.;Set the rounds on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and place in the freezer for 15-20 minutes.;Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Stir in the onions and garlic with a pinch of salt and pepper and the smoked paprika and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chopped tomatoes and cook another 1-2 minutes.;Stir in the corn, potatoes, and stock. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cover, cooking until the potatoes are fork tender, 15-20 minutes.;Beat the eggs in a shallow bowl. In another bowl, pour out the panko crumbs and stir in salt and pepper with your fingers.;Take the goat cheese out of the freezer. Pour the vegetable oil in a skillet until it has covered the bottom to about 1/4 inches deep. Bring the oil to a simmer.;Dip the goat cheese rounds in the egg, roll in the panko, and then drop in the skillet to lightly fry. Cook 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side, or until they are golden brown. Then set them aside to dry on parchment paper.;Mix the flour and the cream until combined. Slowly add it to the soup mixture while stirring, and simmer for 5 minutes to thicken.;Stir in the chives, reserving some for topping. Serve with extra chopped tomatoes and extra corn sliced right from the cob, and a goat cheese round or two![/lt_recipe]
I had a couple of extra ears of corn that I had seasoned and cooked on the grill. I sliced the kernels off and topped the chowder with them. They were white sweet corn as opposed to the yellow sweet corn I’d included in the mixture, so you get some nice differences in the color!
Now that I’m looking at these, these definitely aren’t my best pictures. It was dark and stormy when I made the chowder and I lost all my natural light. I’ll definitely redo the pictures on a better day for cooking, but in the meantime, trust me – the recipe is awesome!
Happy Wednesday, all!
