Winter, meet Summer.

After a freezing cold 18 mile run yesterday, all I wanted was to order some pizza and to spend the rest of the night on the couch. But that wouldn’t be a fun blog post, now would it?  So I persevered with my plans to whip up a crab and corn chowder without following a recipe. One of the reasons I love soups and chowders so much.

I started out the chowder by dicing up a small yellow onion and cutting about 15 small red potatoes in eighths. I then added them to olive oil in my Le Creuset French Oven. A few minutes after I started cooking the onions and potatoes, I added two cups of water to the mix as well as a vegetable bouillon cube and a few shakes of cayenne pepper.

Letting all of that bubble away, I poured myself a glass of Bonny Doon Vineyards Muscat and went off to read blogs for a few minutes.

I returned when the base of the chowder was bubbling away, checked the potatoes to see that they were cooked most of the way through, and added an entire bag of Trader Joe’s organic sweet corn. Trader Joe’s sells some good frozen corn, especially this organic variety and their frozen fire roasted corn which they were out of. As much as I love Trader Joe’s it makes me sad when their supplies are inconsistent.

Here is the part where I ask you not to judge. I used Trader Joe’s canned crab, two cans to be exact. I had planned on buying fresh crab meat, but once I got home did not feel like going out again. I keep canned crab on hand for quick dishes like garlicky crab and pasta, and these always seem to do the trick. But they make me feel as un-gourmet as it gets.

Once I added the crab, it was time for a quick taste, where I determined that more cayenne and black pepper needed to be added. I swirled in about 3/4 cup of heavy cream, stirred it all up, and let it simmer until the hubby arrived home.The whole time I was cooking, I was thinking that corn and crab chowder really blends some of my favorite things from summer, corn and seafood, with some winter comfort, cream and potatoes. It’s an almost deceiving meal, like a crab bake in a pot.

Mmm mmm mm. . . the chowder turned out perfectly. The broth had a slight hint of heat but nothing spicy, the crab was succulently sweet, and the potatoes provided a filling, warm addition for my growling stomach. After we had eaten, I proclaimed, a few times, that I am pretty good at this cooking thing!

I served the chowder with corn bread from a box, Trader Joe’s style. I know corn bread is easy to make, but I had this in my cabinet and decided to make it. Just add an egg, oil, and milk, and pop it in the oven!

My husband received the official word that he can work from home, and since I am home everyday anyway, today should be a fun combination of work, cleaning, baking, and hanging out.

Do you have a snow day or a work from home day today? Or should we all be jealous that you live somewhere warm and sunny without everlasting snow?