Farm Fresh Vegetable Corn Chowder {Gluten Free, Vegan}

This recipe was my hubby's idea and it turned out great! This soup has great flavor and is a brighter version of traditional corn chowder with the addition of fresh seasonal vegetables like green beans and sweet potato. I love that he grilled some of the corn for a great roasted flavor, you could also roast it in the oven for a similar effect. Garnish up this sweet and savory chowder with some lemony cilantro and creamy avocado. Enjoy!

Recipe: (serves 4-6)
Ingredients:
2 leeks, {white and light green parts only}, thinly sliced (remove outermost dark green fibrous ends and discard)
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 ears of fresh corn on the cob
3 cups low sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
5 1/4 cups water
5-7 Yukon Gold potatoes (or similar), cubed
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 large sweet potato, cubed
1 large carrot, diced
1/4 cups Sherry cooking wine
1 big handful, fresh green beans, roughly chopped (~1 1/2 cups)
salt and pepper to taste
Garnish such as cilantro, avocado, corn chips, etc.

Directions:
1. In a soup pot add 1 tablespoon olive oil, saute sliced leaks over medium high heat for 5-7 minutes until leeks become fragrant and translucent.
2. Grill or roast 2 ears of corn, set aside.

3. Take remaining 3 ears of corn and, standing them on end, carefully cut the kernals off the cob by running your knife down the sides. Add these kernals to the soup pot and saute for another 2 minutes. 4. Add chicken broth, 5 cups of water, cubed Yukon potatoes and garlic powder to the soup pot and bring to a boil for about 15 minutes.
5. In a separate skillet, saute the sweet potato cubes and carrots in a drizzle of olive oil over medium high heat for 10 minutes. Deglaze the skillet with the Sherry cooking wine and 1/4 cup water. Add the green beans and simmer for an additional 5-7 minutes.
6. Puree the soup mixture with an immersion blender until smooth (or working in batches use a blender and then return soup to the pot)

7. Finally, mix your sauteed sweet potato, carrot and green bean mixture into the soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with cilantro, avocado, corn chips or whatever you like.