Corn (and cabbage) chowder

Food stylist I am not.

Believe me, it tastes better than it looks.

Trying to use up cans that were lost in the back of the pantry. We had two cans of creamed corn that Mom got for . . . something. I don't really like creamed corn. It's far too sweet to eat by itself and the only recipe in which we've ever used it is corn pudding, which I also don't like. 

Somebody suggested adding it to corn bread but, in my book, sweet, moist, corn bread is just corn pudding.

This is still kind of sweet but if you dilute it enough and add ham, it's a lot better.  It's so much better that I will not only eat this batch without resentment, I would even buy creamed corn again if I had to to make it.  I suspect I could just as well make it with regular corn, though.

Except for the canned stuff and the milk, all measurements are approximate.

1 can creamed corn
1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth (water might work)
1/4 pound ham, diced
1 small onion, minced
2 cups milk (skim is fine)
1 can baby potatoes, drained and quartered
1 tablespoon flour
Little bit of oil
Salt and pepper to taste (I didn't add any salt because the chicken broth and ham were plenty salty)
Optional: About 1 cup chopped cabbage

Cook onion in oil until golden. Add ham and cook a bit more. Add water or broth to draw out ham flavor. Add potatoes and brown a little bit (broth will cook down). Add milk,corn, and, if you're using it, cabbage. When soup is bubbling, scoop out some of the liquid, make a paste with the flour, and whisk the paste back in until everything is thickened.

I like my soups/stews/chowders thick. If you don't, skip the flour and/or add more milk.

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