This week’s French Friday’s with Dorie recipe inevitably reminded me of one of my favorite soups, crab and corn chowder. Dorie’s corn soup is a lighter yet substantial alternative for summer, when corn is at its peak in the Northern hemisphere.
The soup itself is very simple, combining fresh corn with a mirepoix and fresh herbs and simmering them in milk where the cobs have steeped. While the original recipe called for sauteing the vegetables in butter, I used half butter, half rendered bacon fat. I already cooked some bacon for the garnish – it would have been such a waste not to add extra flavor. Two bacon slices were definitely not enough for us! I crisped up about five slices, which released just the right amount of fat to use.
The highlight for us was playing with garnishes that contrasted the sweetness of the corn. I didn’t get around making the crème fraîche substitute Dorie suggests, but instead added a dollop of sour cream and chopped bacon, chives, paper-thin jalapeño slices, and clams. I only made enough of the garnishes for the first servings, so the rushed second batch had double the clams, chives, sour cream, a swirl of bacon fat (!), and Louisiana style hot sauce. I could have had two more bowls of the soup like that.
French Fridays with Dorie is an online cooking club where on a weekly basis, home cooks all over the world post their interpretations of a selected recipe from Around My French Table – Dorie Greenspan‘s award winning cookbook. Click here to see everyone’s links!
If you want to check out more pictures that didn’t make it to this post, head to my Corn Soup Flickr Set.
I love how thick you were able to get yours. I think the add-ins were what made the soup really stand out (pancetta, green onion, creme fraiche & lots of extra corn). There was no way that two slices of bacon would cut it 🙂
Your presentation is gorgeous!
I like the bacon fat idea!! I wish I had some bacon fat leftover…! No matter how often I crisp bacon and set aside the bacon fat, it gets used often before it has a chance to sit in the fridge for a couple days…. I’m glad you liked it too!
hot sauce, bacon fat and clams. I’m drooling.
Yes you definitely needed the garnishes to counter the extreme sweet of the corn. Mmmm bacon fat!
Your soup looks amazing and your garnishes sound absolutely delicious!
I can’t wait to try it again and add different flavours!
Bacon fat for the soup…great! I am like sanyaliving…can’t wait to try out different flavors and garnishes as I hop to the rest of the doristas and learn from their version 🙂
Okay, now THAT looks like a bowl of soup that I would love.
Your soup is so yellow! Mine wasn’t quite so. Next time, I’m definitely adding fresh crab. 🙂
beautiful photos. just left mine chunky this time, but a smooth soup with your garnishes looks quite elegant.
Oh my, Adriana…I could’ve had two bowls of this soup myself and maybe go for a third! Those little bursts of color swimming in the yellow broth look so pretty :-).
I love all your green herbs swirled in…so tasty!
Oh, yum. What awesome garnishes! I’m going to have to include jalapeno slices on the next batch – and hot sauce too? Delightful!!
I love that you added clams. Your photos are gorgeous and your soup looks thick and creamy…mine was not so thick!
That top picture looks like it belongs in a magazine! Beautiful soup~
Amazing photos, and soup looks fabulous!
Oh I love corn soup!! This sounds perfect for Fall!
That’s one good looking bowl of soup, Adriana! Using bacon fat to brown the vegetables is brilliant. I made the soup one day and then cooked the bacon right before eating. I’ll reverse the order next time.
Your garnished bowl of soup is calling out to me! I think you put all these flavors together perfectly in one spectacular bowl of pureed corn soup;-)
I would definitely go for that first bowl of soup! Beautiful!
Your soup looks so pretty and your photos are beautiful, Adriana. I love your garnishes and I know my husband would like the jalapeno slices and hot sauce. 🙂 I’m sure it was extra delicious with the bacon and a swirl of bacon fat?! Mmm…Have a great weekend!
Such beautiful pictures. Now I want to make it all over again. I loved this soup.
Beautiful! I love this week’s entry! This cookbook is on my wish list!
This looks amazing! I’m going to follow what you did next time I make this.
Looks really good! We haven’t made it yet so appreciate your “tips” about the bacon & bacon fat 🙂 (I will use them!).
Your second bowl sounds even better than the first! Love your photos, too. We had a lighter version of the soup, but it still tasted very rich. It’s definitely a recipe I’ll be revisiting.
Beautiful clicks…the soup makes my mouth water with the thick and creamy texture and lovely colour.