Sweet Potato Shrimp Chowder

 Sweet Potato Shrimp Chowder.

Sounds crazy, right? It is....crazy good. That sounded lamer than I was hoping.

But really, this recipe is a great way to shake up your boring soup, chili, or chowder.

One of the key ingredients in this chowder is dill.

There wasn't any fresh dill at the store, so we got dillweed. Isn't that a mean name kids call each other?

The longest part of this dish is chopping up the sweet potatoes into 1/2 inch pieces, which isn't really that long. Then sauté with olive oil and sweet potatoes over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes.

Next, add garlic and onion and saute for an additional 2 minutes.

Then add 4 cups of stock. The recipe calls for chicken stock, but I used vegetable. It's what I had, and I figured it would make it a tad bit healthier.

Cook until potatoes soften up (like so).

The recipe says to then remove sweet potatoes and mash, but I just mashed them in the pot. One less dish to wash later!

Then add corn (it's ok if it's still frozen, it will dethaw quickly in the pot!), shrimp, hot sauce, salt, pepper, dill, and thyme. Turn stove down to a simmer and allow it to combine in all it's yummyness for 5 minutes. **Tip: I used a bag of frozen pre-cooked shrimp to save time. I just took out the needed amount before I started cutting the potatoes, stuck them in a colander and ran them under cold water to help them defrost. Then I removed tails and added them to the chowder. They warmed up with the soup.

Top with sour cream and more dill. 

Look at those colors. The sweet potato adds this amazing, well, sweetness, and the dill is just incredible. This unusual dish is definitely an awesome way to give your old chowder a makeover.

I found this recipe on delish.com. I only made a few minor changes, which are noted below:

Sweet Potato, Corn, and Shrimp Chowder


2 tablespoon(s) olive oil
4 medium North Carolina sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (I used 2 large potatoes and that was plenty)
2 strip(s) lean bacon, diced (didn't include, but I'm sure would be amazing!)
1 large onion, diced
2 clove(s) garlic, mined or grated
4 cup(s) chicken stock (used vegetable) 
1 bag(s) (16-ounce) frozen corn kernels or kernels cut from 4 ears fresh corn
1/2 pound(s) raw medium shrimp, peeled (next time I would use a whole pound)
1 1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
1 teaspoon(s) hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco®
1/2 teaspoon(s) cracked black pepper
2 tablespoon(s) fresh thyme leaves (dried)
2 tablespoon(s) chopped fresh dill (dried)
2 teaspoon(s) chopped fresh dill, for garnish
1/2 cup(s) sour cream (optional), for garnish


Directions:
In a stock pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add sweet potatoes and bacon and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken stock and cook until potatoes are just tender but hold their shape.


Remove 1 1/2 cups sweet potatoes from stock pot and mash with a fork. Return mashed potatoes to pot. Add corn, shrimp, salt, hot pepper sauce, pepper, and fresh herbs, stirring to combine. Return soup to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes; be careful not to overcook.


Garnish soup with dill and sour cream, if desired. Soup may be made a few days ahead and chilled. Reheat before serving. Yields 10 cups of soup.

Try this. It's super healthy (especially if you include the changes I made) and will warm you up on a cold snowy night.