Made up BBQ corn and chile chowder

The other day found myself with half a dozen cobs of fresh Ontario corn and a hankering for some corn chowder, so I went to work, making it up as I went along.

I put the cobs on the bbq (I use charcoal) and browned them nicely all over. I've read that some people go to great lengths to cook their bbq corn in the husk, and others soak their corn. I don't do any of that. I cut right to the chase and simply grill those cobs.

Meanwhile, I chopped up a handful of jalapenos, seeds and all, some celery, a green bell pepper and some garlic and tossed it into a pot with some olive oil. I didn't use onions because, well, I'll admit it - I was out of onions. Feel free to add onions at will.

Stop what you're doing. Do you have some tunes on? This soup tastes best with tunes. You can choose. I had Vince Collins on, playing Newfoundland accordion music and it made the soup taste just fine. Check the drawers of the fridge. If you find something that looks like it might be excellent in the soup, by all means, don't let me stop you from using it. Cut the kernels off the bbq-ed cobs and toss them into the pot. Add some stock. I can't give you a measurement because I was making it up as I went along.

Slice up some Portuguese sausage. If you use chorizo or andoulle instead, I won't tell, but I think the Portuguese sausage rocks in this soup. I know there are some vegetarians and some vegans out there, but I don't know how to come close to what this sausage does to the soup without using it. You could substitute, and you'd have a good soup, but I don't think you'd have this soup. How much sausage do you need? Here's the thing. You don't need a lot of it to get the flavour. On the other hand, each of your guests really ought to have a slice or two or three in their bowl. Avoid overpowering the soup with the sausage though.

Cook the soup for half an hour. Meanwhile, make up a little roux using butter and flour. Cook it up together for 10 minutes or so at a low heat, stirring more or less constantly. Add the roux to the soup, stir it around and cook it for a while longer. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Serve with the home-made bread you've been working on while the soup is cooking, along with a cold beer. This soup is even better the second day when the chiles really come into their own.