Grilled Corn and Potato Chowder

You all really need to try this soup!

It is so delicious, and really isn't bad for ya!

My wonderful mother-in-law sends my husband and I occasional goodie boxes! Most of the time, she is sending us weeks worth of coupons, but she never just sends the coupons. There is always some little "goodie" in the package! The last one she loaded down with tons of magazines for my reading pleasure. One of them was the September issue of Cooking Light. I was so excited to look through it, and sure enough I was dog-earing about every other recipe! I came across this recipe for Grilled Corn and Potato Chowder, and I knew I had to make it right away. With the seasons starting to change and the chill of fall starting to make its presence in the air, I knew this soup would be perfect!

I think my favorite thing about this soup was the fact that you take a portion of the corn and process it in a food processor. It acts as the thickening for the soup and also makes the soup "creamy". This way you don't have to use all that heavy cream that normally goes into a soup like this. The original recipe actually does call for a 1/2 cup of half and half, but I just used more skim milk instead.

I do hope you will give it a try, it was so delicious! I actually made a double batch so I could stick some of it in my deep freezer for another rainy cold fall day down the road! God bless my deep freezer!! :o)

Grilled Corn and Potato Chowder

(adapted only slightly from Cooking Light)

1 pound small red potatoes, quartered
1 tablespoon salt, divided
3 tablespoons softened butter, divided
4 ears shucked corn
Cooking spray
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
3 1/2 cups skim milk
2 thyme sprigs
3 tablespoons finely chopped chives
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

dash of garlic salt

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Place a grill basket on grill.

Place potatoes and 2 teaspoons salt in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Let potatoes stand in hot water 5 minutes. Drain; cut into 1/4-inch cubes.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter; brush evenly over corn. Place corn on grill rack coated with cooking spray. Place potatoes in grill basket coated with cooking spray. Grill corn and potatoes 15 minutes or until slightly charred, turning occasionally. Cool corn slightly; cut kernels from cobs. Place 1 cup corn kernels in a food processor; process until smooth.

Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add remaining 1 teaspoon salt and red pepper; cook for 30 seconds, stirring frequently. Stir in potatoes, remaining corn kernels, pureed corn, milk, half-and-half, and thyme sprigs; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Discard thyme sprigs. Stir in chives and remaining ingredients.

Here is the nutritional information from the magazine, although I am guessing the fat was lower (maybe even the calories) from not using any half and half.

Calories: 268
Fat: 12.3g (sat 6.6g,mono 2.2g,poly 0.4g)
Protein: 9.9g
Carbohydrate: 33.8g
Fiber: 3.1g
Cholesterol: 32mg
Iron: 1mg
Sodium: 599mg
Calcium:214mg

Pigs in a Blanket

Let's face it...sometimes we all need a little comfort food.

A couple weekends ago, I got home from work on Friday night, after a long week at work. I was tired. I didn't feel like hitting the gym or cooking dinner. But of course I was hungry so I had to come up with something. I poked around the fridge and realized that I had all the ingredients to make a childhood favorite of mine - Pigs in a Blanket. This was exactly what I needed! Something simple and delicious!

It seems like everyone has their own way of making these delicious little treats. Naturally, I am biased and think my version is the tastiest!! :o) I use Velveeta cheese, and I think that is what makes them so yummy!

These would make great party appetizers, and would also be great after school snacks for kids! They are super easy to make, very inexpensive and full of flavor! I can't say that they are healthy, but we all need a little "unhealthy" every once in a while don't we!

Look at all that ooey, gooey melty cheese! YUM!

PIGS IN A BLANKET

(from the kitchen of Liesl)

4 beef hot dogs, cut in half

1 package of reduced fat refrigerated crescent rolls

2 slices of Velveeta cheese (cut about 1/4 inch thick)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

Take each half of the hot dogs, and cut a slit down the center. Be sure not to cut all the way through the hot dog. You just want a nice slit for the cheese to sit in. Take the 2 slices of Velveeta cheese and cut each slice into fourths. (This will yield 8 rectangles of cheese that fit perfectly in your hot dogs.) Carefully place 1 piece of cheese in each hot dog half.

Roll out crescent rolls. Starting at the long side of each crescent roll, place the cheese filled hot dog down and roll it up like you would if you were just cooking the crescent roll. Continue with the rest of the hot dogs and rolls until you have finished. You will end up with a total of 8.

Cook for about 12-15 minutes or until rolls are golden and cheese is melted.