In June of 1974 I graduated from secretarial school and left home to work at my first away from home job. It was in the thriving metropolis of Kentville, only about 40 minutes from my parents home. It was as the posting clerk at Atlantic Speedy Propane. I can remember it being very scary.
My mother took me up prior to my starting the job and we arranged for me to have room and board with an elderly lady who had a large Victorian home that she rented out rooms in. Included was my three meals a day, all for $20 a week. The lady's name was Mrs. Boates. I remember her seeming really old to me. It was probably the white hair. In all truth, I am probably older now than she was then.
She made me a hearty breakfast every morning, usually oatmeal and toast with jam. Homemade jam. She sent me off with a bagged lunch most days. Sandwiches made with her own homemade bread. Boy but they were some good.
I remember she had ants in her pantry, and most meal times there would be ants crawling around the edges of my plate. I was so shy I did not have the courage to say anything about it, but I can remember it freaking me out a bit.
She used to make the most beautiful corn soup. It was incredibly delicious. So much so that I have been dreaming about it for the last 50 years.
I have tried many corn soup recipes through the years, trying to replicate my taste memory of that delicious soup, but they have always fallen short. I do not know what her secret was, but I think I am coming close with this version that I made today.
Finally.
For today's recipe I channeled the best parts of two recipes I found online. One was from The Anthony Kitchen, and the other was from 40 Aprons.
I am pretty sure that Mrs. Boates recipe did not have any potatoes in it. Nor would she have used garlic. We are talking 50 years ago now, and garlic was not something which very many people used at all unless they were Italian. Nor did it have anything like bacon in it.
Her soup was rich and creamy, tasting purely of corn, and yet at the same time it was lovely and thick. I played around today and I came up with a recipe which I think has come pretty close.
I did enjoy the time I spent living in her home. I was not much of a party animal, to be honest. I went to work, came home at the end of the work day, and was in bed reading by 7:30. I was so shy, the idea of going out anywhere at night or doing anything wild never occurred to me, plus I did not have any friends there to hang around with if I had wanted to go out. I remember feeling quite homesick.
When I left to get married, she gave me a lovely little printed metal recipe box to take with me. I still had it when I was in the U.K. It was always one of my treasures. Unfortunately it got left behind when I came back to Canada in 2020. It makes me a bit sad when I think about having had to leave it behind, but really, if we carry the special things of our lives in our hearts (and I do) then nobody can take them away from us.
Things like the memory of Mrs. Boates' homemade bread sandwiches and her delicious Cream Corn Soup. Enjoy!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CREAM CORN SOUP
Just a few simple basic every day ordinary ingredients. I always like to keep things simple and affordable if I can!
- 1 stalk celery, washed and trimmed
- 1 small onion, peeled
- 1/2 TBS butter
- 1/2 cup (72g) frozen corn
- 1 cup (240ml) chicken stock
- 1 tin (10 oz/284g) (about 1 1/2 cups) creamed corn
- 1/4 to 1/2 (60ml to 120ml) of single cream or undiluted evaporated milk
- white pepper and salt to taste
If you wanted to you could use canned corn, but you would end up with some corn leftover. I think its probably cheaper to use frozen corn as you can measure out just how much you need. I also think it tastes fresher.
I used Better Than Bullion chicken stock concentrate. I keep the chicken, beef and vegetable versions in my refrigerator all the time. They are so handy to use.
The cream corn is the smaller tin of creamed corn. There is about 1 1/2 cups maximum in it. I chose the smaller tin so that there would be no waste.
I do think that using undiluted evaporated milk brought this closer to my taste memory that cream would do. Both are good however. I use the evaporated skim milk.
Do note that evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk are not the same thing. The evaporated milk I use is not sweetened!
HOW TO MAKE CREAM CORN SOUP
Soup is one of the easiest things to cook. Well, to me at any rate. This one is very simple, quick and easy to make.
Chop the celery and onion into a small dice.Heat the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once it begins to foam add the celery and onion. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened without browning.Add the corn and chicken stock. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for about 5 minutes, until everything is soft.
Blend until smooth using a stick blender or regular blender. You can also use a food processor. Strain back into a clean saucepan.Add the cream corn and the single cream ( evaporated milk), whisking everything together well to combine. Heat through.Season to taste with white pepper and salt. Serve hot with crackers or bread. 
I was really pleased with the way this turned out. It was pretty close to what I have been thinking about for all of these years! In all truth, I don't think we can ever quite replicate our taste memories to be as good as the original, but this was a pretty darn delicious try!
I hope that you will be inspired to want to try it as well and that if you do, you will enjoy it. I think the key is using evaporated milk, but again, I know it is not to everyone's taste, so use single cream if you would prefer. (half and half)
If you are fond of soup for either lunch or a light supper, you might also enjoy the following soups!
LEMON & CHICKEN SOUP - This is a fabulously tasty chicken soup, with fresh flavors! It uses chicken stock along with lemon juice. You might think the lemon would be overpowering, but it really isn't. It adds a lovely layer of flavor that is quite pleasant! It is delicious and hearty. You can make everything up to adding the pasta ahead of time, but do wait until not too long before serving it to add your pasta.
CREAMY HUNGARIAN MUSHROOM SOUP - Sweet onion, meaty mushrooms, lemon, dill, sour cream and a good stock all work together to create something with is sublime and quite simply delicious. There is no other word to describe it. Not is this soup incredibly tasty, but it is also really quick and easy to make. Do make the croutons. I have always felt a bit of something atop a bowl of soup turns it from something into something special!!Yield: 2Author: Marie Rayner
Cream Corn Soup
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 MinDeliciously fresh tasting and creamy, this is a very simple soup to make that I hope you will enjoy!Ingredients
- 1 stalk celery, washed and trimmed
- 1 small onion, peeled
- 1/2 TBS butter
- 1/2 cup (72g) frozen corn
- 1 cup (240ml) chicken stock
- 1 tin (10 oz/284g) (about 1 1/2 cups) creamed corn
- 1/4 to 1/2 (60ml to 120ml) of single cream or undiluted evaporated milk
- white pepper and salt to taste
Instructions
- Chop the celery and onion into a small dice.
- Heat the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once it begins to foam add the celery and onion. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened without browning.
- Add the corn and chicken stock. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for about 5 minutes, until everything is soft.
- Blend until smooth using a stick blender or regular blender. You can also use a food processor. Strain back into a clean saucepan.
- Add the cream corn and the single cream ( evaporated milk), whisking everything together well to combine. Heat through.
- Season to taste with white pepper and salt. Serve hot with crackers or bread.
Did you make this recipe?
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