Summer Sqash Chowder

I still have a freezer full of Petit Pan and striped zucchinis. And it's taken me a good, long while, but I have finally concocted a decent meal with them. Just in time to be a side dish for Thanksgiving:

Four cups diced summer or petit pan squash. If using petit pan, puree the tough little fellars. I pureed the whole lot.

Baby peeled carrots, sliced the long way.

Large yellow onion, cut very coarsely. Maybe making rings, if you like that sort of thing in soup.

Large red potato, washed and diced. Leave some big chunks for the guys.

(If you insist, you can add celery and garlic. For VeggiGirl, nothing is soup without garlic. Heck, nothing is worth eating without garlic, in her book.)

You can throw them all into a crockpot and walk away for a few hours, or you can toss it into a microwave-safe, covered casserole and nuke them for about thirty minutes. Either way, start with a non-stick spray coating, and add about two tablespoons vegetable oil. I use sunflower or olive oil. (My mother would have started with salt pork and bacon, but hello....we're already on blood-pressure meds.)

Add a can of whole kernel corn, liquid and all. Some fresh ground pepper (and salt for you lucky, lower blood pressure people!) To make it pretty, thinly slice a baby-sized zucchini and drop it in. Let it cook until the zucchini is al dente. Yep, just like pasta.

Adding cream (or non-dairy creamer) is de rigeur for traditionalists, but I didn't really think it needed it. A sprinkle of sweet, Hungarian paprika makes it look fancy.

pb
Little Pond