I’ve had to take a bit of time off recipe development as I had my vaccine on Sunday afternoon and I needed a few days to feel more human again. Luckily, this second jab wasn’t as bad as my first but I still spent 3 days in bed, I felt so weak and I’m still not 100%. From other news, I am finally able to take a shower – what a great feeling after nearly 4 weeks of improvisation – and I have a useable bathroom but there are still a lot of things to sort out.
Today, the electricians are supposed to turn up and connect the fan to the main light as it’s not working the way it should. We still need to decide on a new paint colour as Duncan is not enamoured with the subtle peachy pink that we ended up choosing. I like it but it doesn’t quite go with the floor tiles as the pink on those reads a bit colder. The issue is that those tiles appeared light peach when I held them up to the window, but the floor doesn’t get any natural light so they tend to look much colder there.
We also need to install the mirror and mirror lights as they didn’t arrive in time for the 2nd fix, give the place a good clean and seal all of the wet area grout, purchase and put up some shelves and plants. The end is in sight but our energy levels and motivation are definitely quite depleted by now.
It’s been a tough month, quite a few things have gone wrong and I have been a bit stressed. Because of the lack of a shower, dust everywhere and now the vaccine my fitness routine has fallen by the wayside and I really need to return to it for the sake of my mental health, if nothing else.
The weather has definitely started leaning towards autumn and I was getting ready to make some apple pie, but then it warmed up again all of a sudden. I came up with this dish when the weather was still in the autumn territory and as I don’t think cool weather is too far off, I am running with it. It’s a simple yet comforting vegan corn chowder, topped with fried vegan chorizo, some chilli oil and fresh parsley. It’s filling, comforting and healthy – makes for a perfect lunch on a rainy day or dinner on a cooler evening. I like to have it with a side of crusty bread. It’s not very labour intensive but tastes like the end of summer and the beginning of autumn – one of my favourite times of the year.
- 4-6* corn cobs, kernels shaved
- 2 tbsp / 30 ml olive oil (or vegan stock for oil-free version)
- 1 small onion or 8 spring onions / scallions, finely diced
- 3-4 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1 litre / 4 cups almond or soy milk
- 2 tbsp white miso*
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp smoked paprika, more to garnish
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- 30-45 ml / 2-3 tbsp lemon juice, adjust to taste
- 4 vegan chorizo sausages
- 4 tsp chilli oil, to serve (optional)
- fresh parsley, to serve (optional)
- Heat up an iron cast griddle pan (or use low BBQ), brush corn with a little oil and arrange them on the hot pan. Grill, turning every 3-4 minutes and rotating the position (those in the middle of the pan will be done quicker) until the corn is charred all over. You could simmer the corn instead but the flavour of the dish won’t be as good.
- Shave kernels off cooked corn. If using 6 cobs, keep approximately 2 cob’s worth aside for garnish. Do not discard the cobs.
- Heat up the oil in a large, heavy bottomed pot. If you want to keep this soup oil-free, use veggie stock and add it in together with onion or spring onions.
- Once the oil gets hot, throw in diced onion. Sauté on a very medium-low heat until soft (approx. 5 minutes).
- Next, throw in garlic. Sauté for another 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add plant milk and shaved cobs. Bring to a gentle simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes on low heat to infuse with flavour, watch the pot as it may want to boil over.
- Discard the cobs, add miso, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, a good pinch of salt and pepper to the pot together with 4 cobs’ worth of kernels.
- Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth, you can keep some more corn kernels back if you prefer more texture.
- Return the mixture to the pot, warm it up. Adjust the seasoning and add lemon juice to taste to balance the corn’s natural sweetness.
- Slice vegan chorizo on the diagonal into 1.25 cm / ½” pieces. Heat up a teaspoon of oil in a cast iron skillet and fry it until browned, turning regularly.
- Divide the vegan corn chowder between 4 bowls, top with vegan chorizo pieces, drizzle with chilli oil (or good olive oil) and sprinkle with fresh parsley. Serve alongside some crusty bread.
*MISO – be sure to use gluten-free type of miso if you want to keep this dish gluten-free.