I set out to make a pot of potato soup the other night… and it turned into something entirely different, but very tasty!

We had some leftover salmon from the night before, so I added that in with the garlic and leeks. Then I used a buttery sweet corn soup (from Pacific) that I had in the pantry instead of the milk. That made for a very tasty chowder in and of itself… but then I kicked it up another notch! We also had some spicy sour cream leftover from the night before – basically sour cream mixed with cholula pepper sauce & dry cholula seasoning – and a can of fire roasted green chilis. The result was very tasty!

I’m calling it Western Seafood Chowder, as it is a melding of Southwestern and Northwestern cooking. It is a great meal starter, or make it the meal!

• 5 red potatoes – peeled & chopped
• 5 carrots – peeled and chopped
• ½ cup corn

seafood options

• pre-cooked fish (leftovers are great!)
• scallops
• clams
• fish (salmon, halibut, cod, tilapia, etc)
  
  2 Tbsp. minced leek
• 1-2 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 small can ortega green chilis or jalapenos (depending on the heat you want) or 1 fresh jalapeno, diced and seeded
• 2 slices peppered bacon – cut into 1/2-inch pieces before frying
• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 3 Tbsp. whole wheat flour
• 1 ½ tsp. black pepper OR Montreal Steak Seasoning
• ¼ tsp. white pepper
• seafood seasoning of your choice
  
  ½ carton Pacific Buttery Sweet Corn soup
• ½ carton chicken broth
• 2 Tbsp. heavy cream
  
  Cheddar cheese – shredded
• sour cream*

Boil the potatoes and carrots until soft. About 5 minutes before they are done, add the corn (frozen works well).

In a large saucepan melt 2 Tbsp. of butter, add the uncooked bacon pieces and saute the pepper, leeks and garlic until translucent. If you are using uncooked fish, scallops or clams, add them at this time. Add a touch of olive oil if the butter starts to cook off too soon. Add the black and white pepper and the seafood seasoning. If you are using pre-cooked seafood, add it now.

Sprinkle the flour over the garlic mixture and stir quickly to create a roux. Add the rest of the butter, and allow it to brown. If it is too thick, add the heavy cream.

Add some of the corn soup and stir to mix in the roux with no lumps.

Drain the potatoes and add them to the soup base. Add the rest of the corn soup and chicken broth – enough to make the soup slightly thinner that you want it to end up. If you haven’t added the cream yet, add it now.

Let it simmer for 10 minutes or so and taste it to see if it needs any more seasonings.

Sprinkle shredded cheese in the bottom of each bowl – enough to make a small mound. Ladle the chowder into the bowls and add a dollop of sour cream* to the top. Sprinkle with cheese and chives or dill to garnish.

Serve with warm tortillas or crusty sourdough bread.

*for a tasty upgrade to your sour cream, take 1/2 cup sour cream and mix in 1/2 to 1 tsp. hot chili sauce like cholula or tobasco. You can make it as hot as you want it by adding more or less sauce!