{vegan} skinny corn chowder

So what’s up with this colorful veg-loaded {vegan} skinny corn chowder? Does it taste as good as it looks? Hell yes, because I made it.

This gorgeous {healthy} summer soup is packed with veggies that only enhance the flavor. A bowl of this skinny corn chowder will fill you up without the extra calories from the typical cream-based corn chowder. Is it still thick? Yes, the starch in the potatoes is a natural thickener, opposed to using butter and flour. Is it creamy? Yes, from unsweetened coconut milk and vegetable broth. No heavy cream needed. Is it spicy? Heck yes, from the serrano pepper. Also, guess what? There is NO added salt! I mean you are more than welcome to add salt, but a few teaspoons of soy sauce {or fish sauce if you’re not vegan} and a shake or two of Old Bay Seasoning {which has celery salt} offered the perfect amount of salt. Another secret, I added turmeric, giving it that beautiful golden hue and a unique depth of flavor!

{Shout out to my art teacher friend Mary Beth! She graciously allowed me to scrounge around her art studio for scraps of wood and metal yesterday. I was elated to find this rusted piece of metal. The other side is just as unique. Can’t wait to get some major use out of this piece.}

Why am I cooking vegan all of a sudden? Well for 5 weeks now, my husband and I have been doing the 6-week EAT TO LIVE challenge by Dr. Joel Fuhrman {outlined in his book}. Basically, this challenge is to encourage living a healthy lifestyle for the rest of your life. He explains every single food group on the food pyramid and how USA’s portions and BMI are way off. America is becoming obese and our mortality rates are increasing because of the way we eat. The hubs and I were becoming this way. No, we were not in danger of a heart attack, but we were not eating healthy or exercising. So we started this challenge in order to get ourselves back on {a healthy} track.

How was the diet? Freaking hard. Here’s the low down. No salt, No sugar {of any kind}, No oil, No meat, and No animal-by products. So we have been vegan without any way to flavor our food. Sauteing veggies was impossible, therefore we had to boil or steam them. Low sodium soy sauce has become my best friend. For sweets? I have been drinking watermelon water {watermelon blended with ice and water} with some unsweetened coconut flakes. So refreshing by the pool. For a snack? Walnuts and a banana. I have learned to appreciate the sweetness of fruit and intensity of garlic and ginger. Read more about our diet here {click}.

On the plus side, I have become more creative in my cooking and have noticed that there are a ton of people out there that are looking for vegan recipes! Who knew? Also, the hubs lost 20 pounds and I lost 10, in just 4 weeks! I took a mini break from this diet last Friday to this Monday, since my girlfriends from Pennsylvania came to visit. We ate incredible Savannah food and drank spectacular cocktails. It was worth it. But the weird thing? As soon as they left, I immediately went back to being vegan. I didn’t even want to have eggs for breakfast. I didn’t make oatmeal with cream and brown sugar. I didn’t buy a salad with chicken for lunch. Instead, I went to our local vegan coffee shop and ordered a curried tofu salad. Then I bought tofu at the store so I could make faux eggs with turmeric. Weird huh? This was not necessarily for flavor, but because I know it’s a healthy way to live and eat.

So the hubs and I have decided that we will eat as vegan {or vegetarian} as we can, unless we are having a cheat day or special occasion {a party or guests coming to visit us}. Our cheat days will be one or two meals a week. Just meals, not a full cheat day. We may use some salt when cooking at home, but it will be immensely limited. I mean, I used to twist our salt grinder a good 10 times before dinner was ready to be served. As far as olive oil, I bought coconut oil for a healthier option {but it’s not as healthy as not using it at all}. I am hoping this plan will help us have a healthy relationship with food, where we can enjoy our favorite foods and not feel guilty when we splurge.

Ready to make some healthy {vegan} corn chowder?

ingredients

• 3 ears of corn
• 2 small red potatoes and 4-6 various multicolored small potatoes, quartered
• 3-4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup roasted red pepper, chopped
• 3 okra, sliced
• 2 serrano peppers, chopped
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk {add more later to loosen the soup if too thick}
• 2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 teaspoon turmeric {for color and flavor}
• 1/4 teaspoon celery seeds
• 2 teaspoons low sodium soy sauce or fish sauce {add more to taste}
• salt and pepper to taste
• chives or scallions, sliced for garnish

directions

1. Turn oven on high broil. Shuck corn and place on a cookie sheet. Broil corn until kernels are brown {about 20 minutes}, turning over once at 10 min. mark. Set aside to cool. Once cooled, remove kernels carefully with a knife {downwards motion} and set aside.
2. While corn cooks, set a small pot of water to high. Once water is boiling, add potatoes and carrots. Allow them to cook until soft {about 10-15 minutes}. Drain and set aside.
3. While that boils, put the coconut or olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Saute the onions, garlic and HALF the okra until soft. Add broth, coconut milk, Old Bay, and turmeric to the saute pan.
4. Add HALF of the cooked potatoes, carrots, and corn kernels to the coconut milk mixture. Blend until smooth with immersion blender or in a stand blender {in small batches}.
5. Then toss in the other HALF of the potatoes, carrots, okra, and corn kernels as well as serrano pepper, roasted red pepper, celery seeds, soy sauce, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir and adjust seasonings. Cook for a few more minutes and add more coconut milk to loosen the broth if too thick.
6. Pour into bowls and serve with sliced chives. Now you have a chunky skinny veg-loaded corn chowder.

This corn chowder is so bright in flavor and visual appeal. The coconut milk and the roasted corn add a subtle sweet flavor, while the Old Bay seasoning and soy sauce give a salty seafood-like punch. The serrano pepper provides a subtle heat, which I love. Chunks of carrots, potatoes and roasted red peppers give you that hearty bite that is expected in chowder.

This is a guiltless, healthy and vegan corn chowder that even meat-eaters {like hubs and I} will love.