Chicken Potato Chowder

Autumn is here and it is the season for soup! This chowder is made from a base that I use for several other soups. Sometimes I also start with Swanson's chicken broth. I like to use Wondra flour as a thickening agent because it makes such a smooth paste.
This soups smells wonderful while it is cooking and it tastes even better.

Chicken Potato Chowder

Broth Base:
6-8 cups water
4-6 chicken breasts
1 tsp salt
1 tsp basil
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp pepper

Soup:
strained broth base
1/4 cup Wondra flour or cornstarch
1/4 cup water
cooked and shredded chicken
8-10 small cooked new potatoes, chopped with skins on
1 - 1/2 cups fresh or frozen corn
1 - 1/2 tsp salt (you may want to increase this to your taste -it needs a lot of salt)
1- 1/2 tsp basil
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 -3/4 cup half and half

1. In a medium saucepan, stew chicken in water with spices until tender. This will take about 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cook potatoes in a larger saucepan until done.
3. Remove the chicken once it is cooked onto a platter to cool slightly. Strain the broth into the pot of potatoes. Bring to a boil.
4. Add additional spices and corn. Combine Wondra flour and water with a wire whisk to form a paste. Add to the boiling broth. Add more if necessary to achieve the desired thickness.
5. Add half and half.


Stew chicken with spices for about 30 minutes:

Remove to cool:

Strain chicken broth into the pot of potatoes once they are tender:

This is why I like to strain the broth:

In a separate bowl, combine the flour and water with a wire whisk. Then stir it into the boiling soup and allow to thicken.


Add half and half for flavor and creaminess:

Mmmm... a nice comforting bowl of soup on a lovely autumn evening. It's hard to improve on that scenario.