Smoky Creamed Corn With Green Chilies

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While many creamed vegetables mate a healthy veggie with a load of fat, this recipe manages to keep the fat down while keeping the flavor up.AP

Creamed vegetable dishes are delicious, comforting classics. But it can be a bit troubling to take nature's most healthful foods and essentially nestle them in a pool of fat.

Many recipes for creamed corn or spinach call for using a traditional white sauce made from whole milk thickened with a butter and flour roux. Others are primarily reduced heavy cream and sour cream, which don't have a stellar nutritional profile, either.

Yet creamy, lower-fat vegetable dishes can be every bit as tasty and satisfying as their full-fat cousins.

One way to go is to make a low-fat white sauce by heating ¾ cup of skim or low-fat milk until steaming. In a small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour with 1/4 cup of cold milk. Stir the flour mixture into the hot milk and cook, whisking constantly, until thick, 2 to 3 minutes.

Once thickened, add 1/4 cup of any extra-sharp sharp cheese (use full fat, because with its superior flavor even a little will go a long way) and a bit of Dijon mustard to make a cheesy sauce, or add herbs and spices, such as snipped chives and a pinch of nutmeg, to make a more traditional white sauce. Mix the sauce with any cooked vegetables you like.

This recipe for smoky creamed corn with green chilies uses some cornstarch as a thickener, but also gets much of its velvety texture by pureeing two-thirds of the corn in a blender. A mere teaspoon of butter goes a long way in adding a familiar richness to the complex blend of sweet and spicy flavors.

Look for smoked paprika in the grocer's spice section, or in a pinch, just use plain paprika.

How to make it

Start to finish: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon butter or canola oil

4-ounce can diced green chilies

1/2; teaspoon smoked paprika

3 cups fresh corn kernels, divided (about 7 cobs)

1 1/4 cups skim milk

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

In a medium saucepan over medium, heat the oil. Add the chilies and paprika and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a blender, place 2 cups of the corn, the milk, cornstarch and salt. Blend until smooth. Transfer the puree to the saucepan with the chilies and add the remaining 1 cup of corn. Cook over medium-high, stirring constantly, until the mixture simmers and thickens and the corn is tender, 7 to 10 minutes.

Nutrition information per serving (values are rounded to the nearest whole number): 163 calories; 19 calories from fat; 2 grams fat (0 grams saturated; 0 grams trans fats); 2 milligrams cholesterol; 34 grams carbohydrate; 6 grams protein; 1 gram fiber; 216 milligrams sodium.

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