Q. I've got all kinds of corn right now, and I've been wanting to make a light corn chowder with it. Do you have a Recipe Doctor recipe you could share?

A. I'm up to my elbows in ears of corn, too! There's a farm near my house that mostly grows corn, and harvest time is now. This recipe works great with frozen corn, too. I lightened a corn chowder recipe from the wonderful restaurant chain Mimi's Cafe. I used 2 tablespoons of olive oil instead of 1/4 cup butter. I doubled the chopped onion and increased the diced celery and potato cubes a little. I used chicken broth instead of water to boost the flavor, and I added fat-free half-and-half instead of real half-and-half. I also cut the salt in half. What do you save for your trouble? About 100 calories, 15 grams of fat, 11 grams of saturated fat, and 56 milligrams cholesterol per serving for still delicious corn chowder.

Original recipe contains 330 calories, 20.5 grams fat, 12. 5 grams saturated fat, and 60 mg cholesterol per serving.

LIGHT CAFE CORN CHOWDER

2 tablespoons olive oil

3/4 cup chopped sweet onion (mild onion can be substituted)

1 cup celery, large dice

2 1/2 cups chicken broth

3 cups cubed potatoes (about 2 medium potatoes cut in 1/2-inch cubes)

3 cups fat-free half-and-half, divided use

16-ounce bag frozen corn, thawed (about 3 1/4 cups)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

A few pinches white or black pepper

4 tablespoons flour

Over medium heat, add olive oil to large, nonstick saucepan. When hot, add onion and celery and simmer until soft, about 5 minutes.

Add chicken broth, potato, corn, sugar, salt, and pepper to saucepan with onion mixture. Cover and simmer 30 minutes or until potatoes are barely tender.

Whisk the flour into 1 cup of the half-and-half and stir mixture into the chowder in large saucepan. Stir in the remaining 2 cups of half-and-half.

Cover and simmer until chowder had thickened to a creamy consistency (about 15 minutes). Add salt and pepper to taste if desired. Spoon into soup bowls and serve.

Makes 8 servings.