Summer Corn Soup

This past weekend when we were driving home from Pennsylvania we were surrounded by corn fields. We could literally open the car window and pick an ear of corn. We found this little stand right next to a corn field, where you put the money in a fishing box and take as much corn as you want. So I bought 12 ears of corn and today I am planning on making one of my favorite soups. The recipe is below and I recommend that you garnish it with sour cream, tomatoes and basil, it really makes a big difference in the way the soup tastes. Yummy! If you have a favorite recipe, I would love to hear about it.

Summer Corn Soup
Serves six

5 to 6 large ears sweet corn, shucked, silks removed
Kosher salt
3 Tbs. oil or unsalted butter, or a combination
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 cup diced celery
1 medium red potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
3 to 4 sprigs of fresh marjoram leaves, stripped and chopped
Freshly ground pepper
Pinch of cayenne
1/4 cup sour cream, for garnish
1/2 cup finely diced fresh tomatoes, for garnish
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil, for garnish


Cut the kernels off the ears of corn by starting to cut halfway down the ear and slicing to the bottom, rotating the ears as you go; don't try to cut too close to the base of the kernels, Turn the ear over and repeat to remove all the kernels. You'll need 3 1/2 to 4 cups of kernels for the soup.

Stand one cob on end in a pie plate or other shallow dish and use the back edge of the knife to scrape the cobs and extract as much "milk" and solids as you can. Set this raw corn puree aside.

Break the cobs in half and put them in a heave 4-quart pot. Add 6 cups water and 1 tsp. salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Discard the cobs. Pour the liquid into a bowl and set a side.

Set the pot back over medium-high heat and add the oil or butter (or both). When it's hot, add the onion and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium, add the celery, sprinkle with salt,and stir. Cover the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, 5 to 6 minute; don't let them color (if they start to brown before softening, reduce the heat). Add the potatoes, marjoram, black pepper (about six turns of the grinder), and cayenne and stir to distribute the seasonings. Add the corn stock. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, cover, lower the heat to medium low, and simmer until the vegetables are tender enough to puree, 20 to 30 minutes. Add most of the corn kernels, reserving about 1 cup. Simmer gently for another 10 minutes. Puree the soup in batches in a blender (be careful to fill the blender no more than one-third full, vent the lid, and hold a towel over the lid while you turn it on). Put the pureed soup back in the pot. Taste for seasoning and add more salt or pepper if necessary. Add the reserved corn kernels and corn "milk", and simmer just long enough to take the raw edge off the corn, about 5 minutes. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature, garnished with a small dollop of sour cream and the tomatoes and basil.

Enjoy!