Corn Chowder and Scallops

A cold Saturday in New York City and the kids were off ice skating in Central Park. That meant it was time to make some soup.

I had discovered a bag of this past summer’s corn in the freezer last night, so corn chowder it was. But I had also just discovered Oswego Tea’s site yesterday, and couldn’t get her beautiful picture of seared scallops out of my head. And for some reason, I had tarragon on the mind.

So I made up a corn chowder recipe using tarragon (which really lightens up the flavor of an otherwise potentially heavy tasting soup), and found a great recipe for scallops with tarragon vinaigrette at Teri’s Kitchen. I also served a warm herb bread topped with olive oil and onions that I got at Fairway.

CORN CHOWDER WITH FRESH TARRAGON AND A SCALLOP
I would have preferred using chicken broth and cooking up a few slices of bacon to use the fat for cooking the onions, etc. But my daughter doesn’t eat meat and she loves soup. As it was cooking, she declared it, on smell alone, to be her favorite meal, and asked that I cook it again on her birthday. I’d say that was worth giving up the bacon.

1 tbsp butter or olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
3 celery stalks, diced
1 large clove garlic
1/4 cup white wine
1 qt vegetable stock
1 qt half and half
3 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 bag of frozen cooked corn kernels (I think it was about 2 1/2 cups total)
1-2 sprigs of fresh tarragon (Depends on your taste. I used 1 large sprig and a few leaves)
1 small sprig of thyme (I used about a half of a normal stem)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste (I used a fair amount of both)

In a large Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat and sauté onions, carrot and celery, stirring occasionally, till tender. Add the garlic about halfway through to avoid it burning.

Add wine and cook till it’s evaporated (just a minute or so).

Add vegetable stock and potatoes, bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, then add half and half, corn, tarragon, thyme and cayenne. Cook until the potatoes are tender (It took about 30 mins). Watch so it doesn’t boil. Salt and pepper to taste.

When done, remove the tarragon sprig and thyme. Pour into bowls. Top with a fresh tarragon sprig and a seared scallop (see recipe that follows).

PAN-SEARED SCALLOPS ON GREENS WITH TARRAGON VINAIGRETTE
This past summer, I made tarragon vinegar, which I wished I still had around to use for this recipe. Instead, I used the fresh tarragon as asked for in the original recipe. I love the idea of making the warm vinaigrette using the oil the scallops have been cooked in. If your pan is small and you have to do the scallops in batches, you may need a little more oil for the second batch. I found I needed to add a little oil to the pan at the end to get enough vinaigrette.

1 1/2 lbs large scallops (I found bay scallops)
Salt and fresh ground pepper
4 tbsp olive oil
Mixed salad greens
2 large garlic cloves put through a garlic press
1 tsp Dijon mustard
3 tsp honey
1 tbsp sherry wine vinegar
2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 tbsp chopped fresh chives

Rinse scallops and dry very well between paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a skillet until very hot but not smoking. Add the scallops and sauté until nicely brown, about 3-4 mins. Turn to the other side and cook one more minute.

Arrange the greens on a platter. Combine the remaining ingredients, adding the remaining 1 tbsp unused olive oil last, with a whisk in a small bowl. Arrange the scallops, browned side up, on the bed of greens. (Set enough scallops aside to garnish the corn chowder if you are making it.) Take the skillet off the burner and add the vinaigrette. Stir briskly, just until hot. Drizzle vinaigrette over the scallops and greens. Serve immediately.

Category: Food