Chicken Corn Chowder with Bacon

Place about half of the corn kernels in a blender with the half-and-half and 1 cup of chicken broth. Blend until creamy, then set aside.

Heat oil over medium in a large Dutch oven. Add the onion and sauté a few minutes before adding the carrot and celery. Saute the veggies about 5 minutes, then add the garlic.

Add the creamy corn mixture and the remaining corn kernels, plus the remaining chicken stock to the Dutch oven. Bring to a full boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.

In a large skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until the fat begins to render and the meat begins to firm up. Add the chopped chicken and continue cooking another 3 minutes, just until chicken is browned but not cooked all the way through. Add the bacon/chicken to the Dutch oven and continue to simmer covered.

Using a measuring cup, collect 1 1/2 cups of the liquid from the Dutch oven (it’s okay if some of the chunks get in with the liquid) and set aside.

In the same skillet you used to cook the meat, heat butter over medium heat and add flour. Using a wooden spoon, mix the flour and butter until flour shows some color.

Add the liquid from the measuring cup a tablespoon at a time to the roux (butter/flour mixture in the skillet), allowing it to burn off before adding more liquid.

After you’ve added about 1/2 cup of the liquid, you can begin adding it a little more quickly, but ensure the roux stays thick. Continue doing this until all of the liquid from the measuring cup has been incorporated with the roux.

Add the thick roux to the Dutch oven, stir, and allow the chowder to continue to cook another 25 to 30 minutes at a low boil (increase heat to medium to get the chowder to a low boil if it is not already there) with the cover off. Stir every few minutes.

When chowder reaches its desired thickness, check it for taste and add salt and pepper as desired.

Enjoy while wearing sweatpants.