Chilled Fresh Corn Soup with Cajun Shrimp

What do you do when a thick, hot soup was planned and the day ends up being 100 F? Chill it, of course! Chilled soups hardly have to be the domain of tomatoes and gazpacho - there are plentiful delicious options that will hit your soup craving while keeping the weather cool. The only downside is that since this is already a slow cooker recipe you're talking about planning a day in advance. You'd need to put the ingredients in the slow cooker in the morning and then chill overnight... not always easy with long work days and children at home. However, the good news, is that it requires very little effort time. The ingredients go in with almost no prep and so the cooking and chilling takes very little additional "hands-on" time.

That being said, this soup is meant to be warm so you can certainly go that route if you want dinner tonight - or if you're simply making this in cooler weather than when I made it. Keep in mind the cajun shrimp will be the tiniest bit spicy. This pairs wonderfully with chilled corn soup but if you're not a fan of spice perhaps keep a lighter hand or try another favorite seasoning if you're going the warm route.

Time: 30 min "hands-on" -- 8.25 hrs total for warm soup -- add overnight if chilling!

Chilled Fresh Corn Soup with Cajun Shrimp
Ingredients:
8 ears of corn, shucked
4 c no-salt vegetable stock
2 tsp dried Thyme
8 oz small white potatoes, cut in 3/4" pieces
1 c fat free half and half
1 tsp olive oil
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tbsp cajun spice
3 tsp fresh chives, diced
freshly cracked black pepper

This recipe is adapted from a Cooking Light recipe - check out the original here.

Cut off all of the kernels from the cobs. To avoid making a mess, hold the cob vertical in a large bowl. As you slice down the sides the kernels will fly around a bit but should be caught by the bowl! You may be able to do this directly in your slow cooker if it's large enough.

Put most of the kernels into the slow cooker, setting aside about one cup. Use the dull side of your knife to scrape along the cob, shooting the leftover corn juice straight into the slow cooker as well. Add the vegetable stock, Thyme, and potatoes to the slow cooker. Then, add as many cobs as comfortably fit (I used five). Stir, cover, and cook on low for 7.5 hours.

When the soup is cooked, remove the cobs and discard them. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup until you have a thick, creamy texture. Add the half and half and stir well to incorporate. If you want a hot soup, move on to the next step. If you want a cold soup, cover and chill overnight.

Heat a medium pan over medium heat. Add oil, swirling to coat. Add the shrimp and leftover corn kernels. Sprinkle the cajun spice over the top.  Cook two minutes and flip shrimp. Cook another 1-2 minutes or until the shrimp are cooked (time may vary with size of shrimp, but be careful, shrimp overcook extremely easily so remove them as soon as they're pink!) Stir the chives into the corn-shrimp mixture.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Top with the cajun shrimp mixture and, if wanted, crack some fresh black pepper on top. Enjoy!