Low-Fat Corn Chowder Will Fill You Up, Not Out

Half-Hour Corn Apple Chowder is a simple solution when you’re hungry for a hot, homey supper. This thick, chunky soup is a low-fat blend of frozen corn, canned broth, evaporated skim milk, onions and garlic. A touch of apple cider or juice heightens the natural sweetness of the vegetables and gives the soup a delicate, fruity aroma.

Half-Hour Corn Apple Chowder is easy to make because it takes advantage of ordinary supermarket ingredients, but the combination of harvest flavors will strike you as anything but ordinary.

Served with a leafy green salad and a wedge of focaccia (Italian flatbread), this soothing soup will fill you up but won’t fill you out. Each serving contains less than 3 grams of fat, which means that just 12 percent of the calories come from fat.

Half-Hour Corn Apple Chowder

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 medium yellow onions, chopped (about 2 cups)

6 cloves garlic, chopped, or 1 tablespoon garlic puree

1 tablespoon flour

2 teaspoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 (14-1/2-ounce) can fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth

1 (12-ounce) can evaporated skim milk

1 cup water

1/2 cup apple juice or cider

1 (16-ounce) bag frozen, whole-kernel golden or white corn

Heat the oil in a large kettle over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook slowly until the onions begin to “sweat” moisture, about 3 to 4 minutes.

In a small dish, combine the flour, sugar, salt, cumin and thyme. Sprinkle the flour mixture evenly over the onions and stir well; cook 1 minute, or until the flour becomes slightly gummy.

Stir in the chicken broth, evaporated skim milk, water and apple juice. Stir well to distribute the flour in the liquid and continue stirring frequently until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens slightly.

Add the corn and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.

At the end of the cooking time, puree the vegetables in a blender or food processor or use a hand-held immersion blender. Soup should be thick and slightly lumpy; if it’s too thick, thin it with additional apple juice, cider or water.

Yield: 6 (1-cup) servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 186 calories, 2.5 grams fat (12 percent fat calories), 9 grams protein, 34 grams carbohydrate, 2 milligrams cholesterol, 540 milligrams sodium.

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