Chicken Cheddar Chowder

My husband and I celebrated the sale of our house last weekend at our favorite steakhouse, Delmonico's. On the menu that night was a Corn Chowder that was mighty tasty. One taste of that soup and I was craving a corn-y, creamy soup all week long. This recipe sounded perfect to satisfy my craving and be filling enough as a stand-alone dish. I found the recipe on myrecipes.com. It's actually a Cooking Light recipe but the creaminess and smoky flavor certainly don't lead you to believe that it's also a lower-calorie soup (only 306 in 1.5 cups).

The recipe came together easily with ingredients I had on hand. I did make a couple of modifications. First - I halved the recipe since it's just the two of us. Halving the recipe meant that I should have started by frying only one piece of bacon, but because I used center cut bacon (which has less fat than regular) I kept the number of strips fried at two. The only other changes I made were to use one chicken breast, yukon gold potatoes instead of red, and several dashes of hot red pepper flakes at the end.

The result was a slightly smoky, relatively creamy (yet still light on the tummy), and satisfying soup. The chicken was tender, the corn had the right amount of sweetness, and is definitely something I would make again.

Here's the recipe on myrecipes.com: Chicken Cheddar Chowder

Here's the recipe for a halved, modified version:
Ingredients

• 2 bacon slices (if using center cut, 1 if using regular)
• Cooking spray
• 1 boneless skinless chicken breast
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
• 1 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 1/4 cups fat-free chicken broth
• 1 cup diced peeled red potatoes
• 1 1/4 cups frozen whole-kernel corn
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 cups 2% low-fat milk
• 1/2 cup (3 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• Dashes of red pepper

Preparation

1. Cook bacon in a Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Crumble; set aside.
2. Add chicken, onion, bell pepper, and garlic to bacon fat in pan; sauté 5 minutes.
3. Add broth and potatoes; bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
4. Add corn; stir well.
5. Place flour in a bowl. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended; add to soup.
6. Cook over medium heat 15 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently.
7. Stir in cheese, salt, and pepper(s). Top with crumbled bacon.