Summer Corn Soup – Simple Weeknight Meal

As this post demonstrates, 2015 ended on a very busy note as I am still catching up on recapping summer 2015 cooking projects!  This post could not be more summer-inspired as it involves my favorite seasonal produce – sweet corn.  

As Alice Waters, the author of this recipe in The Art of Simple Food, notes "this is a no-fail soup as long as you have fresh sweet corn."  Her recipe requires 5 ingredients (butter, onion, salt, corn, and water) and could not be easier to make on a weeknight.  Pureed, it also had a nice, thicker consistency than an earlier corn soup I had improvised with a similar mild and sweet flavor.  I made some modifications to the soup when making it – using a leek in addition to onion and garnishing with scallions and Chinese hot sauce – and think generally this is a great base recipe that can be adapted to a variety of preferences.

You begin the recipe by melting 3 tbsp. of butter in a pot (reduced by the 4 tbsp. called for in the original recipe):

Then add the leeks/onions (I used 1/2 large onion, diced, and 1 leek, diced):

While softening, shuck your corn (4 – 5 ears' worth):

When the onions are softened, add your shucked corn to the pot:

Cook for a few minutes, and then add 1 qt of water (or to your liking):

Bring to a boil, then simmer until corn is cooked to your preference.  Puree in batches or use an immersion blender to get a smooth consistency.  You can also strain the soup to get rid of the harder corn pieces, but it's up to you.