Foodie Fridays: Cheesy Corn and Potato Chowder

Soup weather continues here, although we are having a few days of warmer but rainy weather rather than arctic cold at the moment.  I found a hearty recipe for Cheddar Corn Chowder that I modified slightly, adding some celery, using a combination of vegetable and chicken stock, substituting prepackaged potatoes for fresh, and adding a bit of manchego cheese in addition to the cheddar.  If you have any manchego cheese around, I highly recommend it in this soup.  The sharp bite of manchego is very different from that of cheddar, and even a little adds a very distinctive flavor.  I omitted the optional crumbled bacon topping, but bacon lovers should feel free to include this ingredient!

Cheesy Corn and Potato Chowder

2 T. butter
3 T. olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/4 C. flour
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. turmeric
6 C. vegetable and/or chicken stock
4 C. (about 1 1/2 lbs.) diced Yukon Gold potatoes (see Notes)
5 C. frozen corn, thawed
1 C. half 'n half
10 oz. sharp cheese, shredded (see Notes)

Heat the butter and olive oil in a large pot over medium heat until the butter melts.  Add the onion and celery and sauté until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the flour, salt, and turmeric, stirring constantly for two minutes.  Whisk in the stock, stirring well until smooth.  Add the potatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the corn and cook for five minutes until the corn is heated through.  Use an immersion blender to partially purée the soup, leaving some of the corn and potato pieces whole.  Stir in the half 'n half.  Add the cheese a handful at a time, stirring until melted after each addition (the soup will be very thick).  Taste the soup and season with more salt and some pepper if needed.  Stir well and ladle into bowls, topping with more shredded cheese (and/or crumbled bacon) if desired.  Serves 6.

Notes: I used a 20 oz. bag of Simply Potatoes Diced Potatoes with Onion instead of the Yukon Gold potatoes, only because I had some in the freezer and I did not have any Yukon Gold potatoes around.  For the cheese, I used 8 oz. sharp cheddar plus 2 oz. manchego cheese.  I used a potato masher to smash up some of the potato cubes before using the immersion blender, but this was probably not necessary.