Comfort food on a cold day: a good chowder...

The weather has taken a sudden cold turn where I live ~ spring has retreated and it feels more like winter outside. Since it’s so chilly and will remain so for a couple of days (it’s going to dip down into the 20s tonight), I thought I would make something warm and hearty for dinner.
About a month ago, one of my favorite blogs ~ Wives with Knives ~ published a recipe for Shrimp Chicken Corn and Bacon Chowder. I tried it out then and it was absolutely scrumptious. I thought I would make it again tonight. The recipe is below; I hope you’ll give it a try. You’ll find my notes for the recipe in parentheses. And do stop by Wives with Knives for a nice and easy printable version of this recipe ~ click here for that.

Shrimp Chicken Corn and Bacon Chowder

Recipe from Wives with Knives

Ingredients
4 slices of thick-cut bacon, diced
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup onion, chopped (I used 1/2 of a large yellow onion, which was a bit more.)
1/4 cup celery, chopped
1/2 to 1 whole jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped (I substituted 1/2 to 1 tsp red pepper flakes.)
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups 2% milk
1-1/2 cups chopped roasted skinless chicken breast (I used 2 chicken breasts.)
1/2 cup cooked shrimp, cut into small pieces (I used a 12 oz. bag of salad-sized shrimp, which is a bit more.)
1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste (I skipped this.)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
1 15-ounce can creamed corn
2 bay leaves
1 chicken bouillon cube dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water
1 medium size russet potato, peeled, diced and cooked in boiling water until tender, about 5 minutes (I used two potatoes.)

Note
You’ll notice that I added a bit more of some ingredients to the chowder. It didn’t change anything with the cooking process; it just meant the chowder was a bit fuller. Mostly I did it for my own convenience and taste.

Instructions
Cook bacon in a medium pot until just crisp. Remove from pot and drain on a paper towel. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease from the pot. (I pretty much left it all since it wasn’t much more; if you need to, add a bit more flour.) Add butter. Saute onion, celery and jalapeño pepper until tender, stirring frequently. Add flour. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in milk and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes until thick. Remove bay leaves. Serve with a garnish of chopped bacon and parsley, if desired.

Photos by The Art of Living Beautifully