Long Branch Corn Chowder

     A landmark of The Old West, the Long Branch Saloon in Dodge City, Kansas was the old stomping grounds of the legendary Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and Bat Masterson.  William Harris, one of the original owners of the famous watering hole, actually named it after his hometown in New Jersey.  This rich and cheesy chowder is brought to us by the Longbranch Company, they sell and produce their own brand of bloody mary mix called, Bloody Mary Zinger.   
     The key to making this tasty chowder is having all of your ingredients prepared in advance.  Once the onions and celery have softened, things move along rather quickly.  I made it in my 10 inch dutch oven and it took about 25 minutes start to finish.  Pile as many coals as you can under your oven, after I added the corn, I covered the soup with about 10 coals on the lid to help bring it to a final simmer.  This filling chowder is so thick you can almost stand a spoon in it, and so cheesy you can even scoop it up with tortilla chips.

Long Branch Corn Chowder
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup flour
2 cups half and half
2 cups bloody mary mix
2 cups (8 oz) Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1 4 oz can diced chiles, drained
16 oz frozen corn OR 2 15 oz cans canned corn, drained

     Over a full compliment of coals, melt butter in dutch oven.
     Add celery and onion; saute until onion is tender.
     Whisk in flour and cook for two minutes.
     Whisk in half and half and bloody mary mix.
     Stir over heat until smooth and thickened.
     Add Cheddar and whisk until melted.
     Add tomatoes, chilies and corn; stir until well combined.
     Cover with as many coals on the lid as needed to bring soup to a simmer.
     Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until corn has thawed completely and chowder is hot.
     Makes 6-8 servings.

Saute onion and celery in butter over full compliment of coals

Whisk in flour and cook for 2 minutes

Add half and half and bloody mary mix and cook, while stirring,
until thickened; stir in shredded Cheddar

Add corn, chilies and drained tomatoes

Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes until chowder is heated through

Garnish with chopped scallions or crushed tortilla chips