chicken, artichoke and corn soup with puff pastry "croutons"

it's so freaking cold outside that lately, all i want to eat is soup. nice, warm, comforting soup. while perusing soup recipes on food network, i came across a recipe for cream of chicken soup. many of the reviewers thought it tasted like chicken pot pie, which sounded fantastic to me. (although, to be honest, i never thought to myself, "gee, i wish i could drink this chicken pot pie!")

to add a twist to it, i also included corn and artichoke. years ago, i had a chicken, artichoke, corn chowder which was just delicious. the geek declared this soup tasty (although he did leave a couple artichokes in his bowl). he also declared undying love for the puff pastry "croutons".



adapted from this cream of chicken soup recipe on foodnetwork.com
special equipment

• large soup pot
• wooden spoon

ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour
• 7 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 3/4 cups cooked, diced or shredded chicken
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
• 1 can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1-2 sheet of puff pastry

directions

1. take the puff pastry out of the freezer to defrost. if using only one sheet, wrap and return any extra sheets to the freezer.
2. over medium heat, melt the butter in the soup pot.
3. add the onion, carrots, and celery. stir occasionally and cook until soften (12-15 minutes). in between stirs, bundle the thyme and bay leaf and tie it together with twine.
4. add the flour and cook, stirring with the wooden spoon (2 minutes)
5. add in the broth and whisk constantly until the liquid boils.
6. reduce the heat, add the bundle of thyme and bay leaf, and simmer for 15 minutes. while the soup simmers, pre-heat the oven according to the puff pastry package directions and cut the puff pastry sheet into squares.
7. stir in the chicken, artichokes, and corn and return to boil. while waiting for the soup to return to boil, bake the puff pastry according to the package directions.
8. remove from heat and whisk in the heavy cream and sherry
9. add salt and pepper to taste.
10. ladel into soup bowls, top with puff pastry croutons, and enjoy!

notes:

• next time, i think i'll try reducing the butter by 1 or 2 tablespoons...there seemed to be a lot of it.
• i may also reduce or omit the heavy cream and add milk or creamed corn to add thickness without the fat.