- 6 ears sweet corn, husked
- 3 small onions
- 2 carrots
- 1 rib celery
- 2 fresh or dried bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Kosher salt
- 1 pound all-purpose potatoes, such as Yukon Gold, Kennebec, or Yellow Finn
- 6 sprigs fresh marjoram
- Crème fraîche, for serving
- Hold an ear of corn upright on its end and use a sharp knife to cut off the kernels. Once all of the kernels have been removed, use the knife to scrape all of the juice and remaining bits of kernel from the cobs into a bowl. Repeat with the remaining ears. Set the kernels and juice aside.
- Cut the cobs in half and place them in a stockpot. Cut one of the onions into quarters. Cut one of the carrots and the celery into a few large pieces and add them, the quartered onion, and the bay leaves to the stockpot. Cover the contents with cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so the mixture simmers. Cook until fragrant, about 1 hour. Strain the stock, discarding the solids, and set aside.
- Cut the remaining 2 onions and carrot into small dice. In a large heavy-bottomed pot, heat the olive oil and butter over medium-low heat until the butter foams. Add the onions and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the carrot and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the carrot begins to soften, 7 to 10 minutes.
- While the vegetables are cooking, peel the potatoes and cut them into small dice. Strip the leaves off of the marjoram. Add the potatoes, half of the marjoram leaves, the corn and corn juice, and about 1 teaspoon salt to the onions and carrot. Stir to combine and cook for 2 minutes. Add the corn stock to cover and raise the heat to bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes, adding stock or water to cover if needed.
- Transfer half of the soup to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Return the pureed soup to the pot and adjust the consistency with more stock or water as needed. Chop the remaining marjoram leaves. Bring the chowder back to a boil and stir in the marjoram. Ladle into warm bowls and top each serving with a spoonful of crème fraîche. Serve hot.