Shaker Gourmet: chicken chowder for the plague victims

Plague is one of those words when you write/type it out several times, it starts to look strange. Or maybe that's just me. LOL

Anyway, the recipe this week is a fairly recent find of mine that is quickly becoming a favorite here. It's also a nice, warm chicken chowder for those who are on the mend but still feeling bleh --or just a nice dinner (or lunch) for a cool day. It's originally Paula Deen's and here is the original recipe.

Poblano Chicken Chowder
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 large carrot, chopped into small pieces
* 1 large onion, minced
* 3 cloves minced garlic
* 1 large poblano pepper, roasted, seeded, and chopped
* 3/4 cup frozen sweet corn kernels
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* two to three grinds of black pepper
* 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin (or more to taste)
* 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (or more to taste
* 1/8 teaspoon celery seed
* 1.5 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
* 1 3/4 (7 cups) quarts chicken broth
* 1/4 bunch fresh cilantro leaves, minced
* 1 cup diced (large pieces) cooked chicken
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
* 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, or more to taste
* 1/2 cup heavy cream

-- Turn broiler on high and move rack up to the second highest position. Line a baking sheet with foil. Cut the top off the poblano (try not to take much of the pepper, just get the stem), then cut pepper in half. Take out the seeds. Put each half skin side up on foil and roast until blackened in oven (about 10 minutes--but keep an eye on it). Take out of oven and put in airtight container, ziploc bag, or close up tightly in foil. Set aside to let cool. Once cool, you should be able to peel the blackened skin off easily. Chop the roasted, skinned halves into pieces. (This is just one way to roast a pepper that doesn't require turning and if you have a preferred way, go with that)

-- Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the carrots, onions, garlic, poblano peppers, salt, pepper, cumin, thyme, and celery seed. Saute for 7 to 8 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften. Stir in the chicken bouillon. Add the chicken broth and cilantro, and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the carrots are tender. Stir in the chicken and corn and cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken and corn are heated through. Let simmer on low for about 15 minutes.

-- Shortly before the chowder is done, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the flour and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes to cook the flour. Do not allow the mixture to brown! Ladle a half cup of the hot liquid from the stockpot into the skillet, whisking constantly until well-combined. Ladle one more half cup and whisk. Pour the mixture in the skillet into the stockpot, whisking to blend. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 5 minutes longer, or until the mixture begins to thicken. Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the hot sauce, then the cream, and serve.

My changes from the original were mostly to approximately cut it in half--I didn't need 12 - 14 servings! LOL I also took out the celery (added celery seed), added corn, and roasted the pepper. I think this would taste good without the actual chicken meat in it as well and maybe add potato in its place. For those that aren't familiar with poblanos, they aren't especially hot but that have a very nice flavor.

If you'd like to participate in Shaker Gourmet, email me at: shakergourmet (at) gmail.com