Hearty Potato Chowder

By the Gracious Vegan

This divine chowder is perfect for a fall or winter meal, even part of a holiday dinner. It’s substantial, with hints of thyme, onion, celery, and umami. The corn and carrots add specks of color. This chowder could become your go-to potato soup recipe. 

Makes: 8 servings (about 190 calories per serving)

Soak cashews in cold water at least 2 hours, or pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak 20 minutes. (You can skip this step if you have a high-speed blender.) 

• 1 cup raw cashews (whole or pieces)

Add the following ingredients to a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, covered, until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

• 6 medium Yukon gold, red skin, or russet potatoes, peeled (or not, if you prefer) and cut into 1/2” dice (about 6 cups of dice)

• 5 cups vegetable broth

• 1 large onion, diced

• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4” dice

• 1 celery stalk, cut into 1/4” inch dice

• 2 fresh thyme sprigs (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)

While the soup is cooking, complete the cashew cream by draining the cashews and rinsing them under cold water. Then place them in a blender with enough fresh cold water to barely cover them. Blend on high for several minutes until very smooth, so smooth that you can no longer detect any bits of cashews.

After the potatoes are soft, mash some of them in the soup pot with a potato masher and stir to thicken the soup. Add the following ingredients and simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring often, because the cashew cream can burn on the bottom of the pot.

• Kernels from 2 ears of corn (or 1.5 cups frozen corn)

• Cashew cream from 1 cup cashews

• 1 Tablespoon Braggs Liquid Aminos, if you have it; or 2 teaspoons soy sauce

• 1.5 teaspoons salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

Remove the thyme twigs. Garnish each bowl, if desired, with chives and diced tomato.

• 2 tablespoons minced chives (optional)

• 1/2 cup diced tomato (optional)

Timing: hands-on time 45 minutes, total time 50 minutes          

Nutritional information per serving: 223 calories, 9g fat, 2g sat. fat, 33g carbs, 127 mgsodium, 4mg fiber, 6gprotein 

Gluten-free