BLT Sandwiches and Sweet Corn Soup

Today was a perfect day for some comfort food. There is nothing better than a BLT. In my opinion, it's the perfect sandwich. There are many ways to make a BLT, and we have tried more intricate ways to do so, but there is something about the simplicity of a traditional BLT. Now, I needed to make something to go along with this wonderful sandwich, however, we have had so much corn on the cob lately, I wanted to switch it up a bit. I found a recipe for sweet corn soup. Perfect rainy day comfort food. The soup turned out delicious. The only thing I added at the end of the cooking process was a pat of butter that melted into the soup. You can't have corn without butter. Here is the recipe courtesy of Williams Sonoma.

This recipe calls for scraping the corncobs to extract the juices, then adding the juices to the soup, which enhances the flavor.

Ingredients:

6 ears of corn, kernels cut off the cobs, kernels and cobs reserved

6 oz. bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice

2 large yellow onions, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions:

Using a butter knife, scrape the corncobs over a bowl to extract the juices; set the juices aside.

In a 5-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until crisp, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Finely chop the bacon; set aside.

Discard all but 2 Tbs. of the fat from the pot. Set the pot over medium heat, add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and translucent, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring constantly, about 30 seconds. Add the corn kernels and cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is softened, about 10 minutes. Add the reserved corn juices and 7 cups water, and season with salt and black pepper. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes.

Using a food processor, blend the soup in batches until smooth. Return the soup to the pot and stir in the cream. Adjust the seasonings with salt and black pepper. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and garnish with the bacon. Serve immediately. Serves 8 to 10.

Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.