Fresh Corn Soup Topped with Roasted Corn Guacamole

Though it is "summertime" I had a pleasant remembrance of Trader Joe's delicious Creamy Corn and Roasted Red Pepper soup and decided that would be a good use of the corn that we had received in our last vegetable shipment (note, I put summertime in quotations because it is as cold as a SC winter here in SF...hardly surpassing 60 degrees on some days...misterable).

I was attracted to a recipe that I found online that incorporated fresh summer-esque ingredients such as avocado, lime, and cilantro. The only modifications that were made were a cutting the recipe down by about half since we only had 3 ears of corn to work with (though we found a fourth after the fact) and adding tomatoes to the salsa.

Roasted Corn Guacamole
Kernels from 3 ears fresh corn, or 2 cups frozen corn, defrosted
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 lime, finely grated zest and juice
1 jalapeño, stemmed and seeded, finely chopped
1 avocado, pitted and chopped

Soup
Kernels from 5 ears fresh corn, or 3 cups frozen corn, defrosted
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 tomatoe, seeded and chopped (our addition)
1 jalapeño, stemmed and chopped
Salt and black pepper
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
Cilantro sprigs, to garnish

Roast the Corn for the Guacamole
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

Put the corn kernels on the baking sheet and toss with the oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and black pepper to taste. Spread the corn out evenly on the baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes, until the corn turns a golden brown. It may seem that you have left the corn in the oven for too long, but you want the corn to caramelize and get a little crunchy. Remove the corn from the oven and set aside.

Prepare the Corn for the Soup
Put the kernels (fresh or frozen and defrosted) in a blender.

Combine the oil and the garlic in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and jalapeño. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until the vegetables are soft and translucent, about 6 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to the blender and puree until smooth. (You may need to pulse or stir the corn mixture in order to achieve a smooth consistency, but do not add any more liquid.)

Simmer the Soup
Pour the corn puree into the soup pot and place over medium heat. Stir constantly for a few minutes, until the soup begins to thicken. Slowly whisk or stir in the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, decrease the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.

Finish the Roasted Corn Guacamole
In a bowl, combine the roasted corn, red onion, cilantro, lime zest and juice, and jalapeño. Gently stir in the avocado. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve and Garnish
Ladle the soup into soup bowls. Place a generous spoonful of the guacamole in the center of each bowl. Garnish with a small sprig of cilantro placed in the center of each.

The flavor was killer. It was sweet and savory and fresh all in one. With only three cobs of corn (using 2 for the soup and 1 for the salsa) - it was a "light" meal and I would have liked more soup - but with the garnish, it was filling...got to love avocados. The soup wasn't completely smooth but I was okay with that, I liked the slightly rustic appeal, it showed that it was fresh.

I had hoped there would be leftovers, but sadly, none were to be found.