It's Gonna be Soup-er Cold This Week

The winters here in Texas are usually pretty mild.  Our average temperature in February is a low of 41 degrees and a high of 61 degrees.  This week, we are expecting highs in the mid 30's to low 40' and overnight lows from the upper teens to low 30's, and three days of possible sleet/snow.  I am not equipped to handle driving on ice, so I don't chance it unless the choice is made not to cancel school for the day.

So, when I see a forecast of Cold and especially Wet Cold, I start looking for warm food to eat.  Since the Super Bowl was yesterday, I have some leftovers to use up, and we will do our best to eat those first, but I had a vegetable tray that left me with a lot of cherry tomatoes.  I decided to find a creative way to use up without eating them alone.  I found a package of frozen corn and I remembered that I still had green onions leftover from the other recipes I made.  I decided that tomatoes, green onions, and corn might just make a good soup.

I decided to blend the corn with chicken stock to make it creamy.  I sautéed 1/2 of a dice yellow onion in olive oil and added the leftover cherry tomatoes after I cut them in half.  I added the green onions when I added the corn mixture and other ingredients.   After I combined everything and let it simmer a bit, it wasn't creamy enough for me and it seemed a little watery.  So, I added some milk mixed with flour to thicken it up.  I tried to remember how much of what I added to the pot, but I bet if you have more or less of any of the items, it will turn out pretty close.

Corn and Tomato Soup

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 shallots, coarsely chopped (or  ½ yellow onion, diced)
1 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 1/4 cups (1 pound) frozen corn, thawed
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped (or 1 ½ teaspoon of dried)
1/3 cup flour
1 cup milk

Directions

In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat.  Add the shallots, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft.  Stir in the tomatoes and garlic, and simmer on low until the tomatoes mush and the juices thicken, stirring occasionally.  Meanwhile, place the corn and chicken stock in a blender, reserving ½ cup of the corn.  Blend until smooth.  Once the tomatoes are thickened, add the basil and remaining corn, and pour the blended corn mixture into the saucepan.  Bring the soup to a boil.  In a small container with a lid, place the milk and flour together, and shake until blended.  Add it to the pot.  The soup should thicken quickly while stirring.  Turn the heat down to low, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all the flavors combine.

Hopefully, if you make this, it will turn out well.  I don't typically buy canned corn because I like the freshness and flavor of frozen corn, so I can't say whether it would be good with canned corn...but it's probably still worth a try if that's what you have on hand.

Good luck!