Baby It's Cold Outside... What do you like to eat?

It was 28 degrees when I left the house this morning.  Brrrrrrrrrr!  And, a couple of inches of snow remains on the grass from yesterday's blizzard (Texas version).  This weather reminds me of all of the food I like to eat when it's cold outside.  As a child, my Mom would always make frito pie with homemade chili on cold days.  She also liked to make homemade potato soup.  I guess that's why I'm such a soup fan and have been all of my life.  Soup just makes you feel warm and snuggly inside.  What is your warm food favorite on a cold day?

A couple of years ago I won a soup competition for my Hearty Corn Chowder.  The judge of the competition was none other than Dean Fearing himself!

I interpreted this recipe from my mother-in-law's recipe.  My way of interpreting a recipe usually involves adding extra veggies, which I did on this one too. We also serve this recipe at our annual Soup Tasting Open House party, which we held this past weekend.  We had a bunch leftovers from the party, so I just ate a warm bowl of Hearty Corn Chowder for lunch. Now, you can make it yourself!

Hearty Corn Chowder
 1 5 pound bag potatoes, peeled and small cubes
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 bunch celery, skinned and chopped
2 carrots, skinned and copped
3 tablespoons salt
Water to cover
3 cans evaporated milk
3 cans creamed corn
2 cups frozen corn
2 sticks butter
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh ground pepper
1 cup heavy cream

Put potatoes, onion, celery, carrots and 3 tablespoons salt in large pot. Cover with water. Bring to boil and boil until potatoes are soft. Drain and return vegetables to pot. Add evaporated milk, creamed corn, butter, and remaining salt and pepper. Cook on medium heat until warmed through but do not boil. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking. Mash slightly with potato masher. Add cream and additional corn then stir. Garnish with finely diced fresh red bell peppers.

This soup is best if you make it the day before, refrigerate, then warm it back up the next day.
By Michelle May O’Neil