Fresh corn would have made this thick, chunky chowder even better but I was unable to find organic. Corn is one of those items I always buy organic due to the possibility of GMO’s. A very small portion of domestic sweet corn in the produce section is actually GMO, but since it’s not the law for it to be labeled (lame), it’s better to err on the side of caution. Most of the GMO corn is used in processed foods (aka JUNK) and animal feed – just another reason to stay away from that crap and eat WHOLE plant foods!
Anyway, I digress. This soup is delicious….and even better the next day. For more intense and “zesty” flavor, add more cumin and chili powder, and use medium or hot green chiles – I used mild. Jalapeños would be good here too, but as I’ve said before, I’m a spice wimp. I used 2 teaspoons of chili powder and found it to be a bit too spicy, though the fam disagreed (told ya…wimp). One of the two teaspoons was chipotle chili powder since I love that smoky flavor. In one of the pictures below you will see something green in the chowder. I stirred in some steamed kale and it was super yummy.
Update 9/26/13: I made this without the cashews (accidentally) and it was every bit as creamy and delicious. So, I’ve changed the ingredient above to OPTIONAL.
- 1 onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 5 cups potatoes peeled and diced small
- 1 cup carrots diced small
- 1 16 oz bag frozen corn
- 1 4 oz can green chilis
- 6 cups vegetable broth or water or a combo
- 1/3 cup raw cashews (OPTIONAL: See Update above) soaked 1 hour, drained
- 2 TBS cornstarch
- 1 cup non-dairy milk
- 3-4 TBS nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- Cover cashews with water and soak 1 hour.
- In large pot, saute onion until soft, using small amounts of water as it sticks.
- Add garlic, cumin and chili powder to onion and cook 1-2 minutes, using water to loosen from pan.
- To pot add potatoes, carrots, corn, green chiles and broth/water. Bring to boil, lower heat and simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15-20 minutes.
- Transfer 2-3 cups of soup (depending how chunky you want the end product to be) to blender, and add cashews, cornstarch, non-dairy milk, nutritional yeast, salt, onion powder and garlic powder. Blend until smooth. Poor back into pot with the rest of the chowder and stir until combined. Simmer on low 10-15 minutes. Serve!