The season for corn is now. Sure, you can get corn year round from places like Florida and the freezer case, but nothing compares in sweetness and taste to locally grown New England corn in the late summer and fall. Corn, of course, is great on the cob, boiled or steamed with a thin slab of butter dribbling down the side. However, one of the best ways to highlight the sweet taste of corn in the coming colder months is soup. And, since we are in New England, what soup would be more fitting than creamy chowder.Despite the numerous offerings of this sustenance scattered throughout the Boston area, finding an excellent bowl of corn chowder can be a challenge. Usually a warning sign for mediocre soup is the precarious spelling, "chowdah." Those of us who fail to pronounce our "r" endings generally aren't aware of it, and we would certainly never bother to change our spelling as a result. "Chowdah" means one thing and one thing only: tourist trap.

Another sign that it's time to put down the spoon and run is tomatoes. Apparently, some people in Manhattan choose to ruin their chowder by putting tomatoes in it and leaving the dairy out. It seems New York City failed to get the memo that the tart taste of tomato overpowers the delicate flavors of the other ingredients. Unless you're making gazpacho, the tomato has no place in soup.

The best way to ensure a good chowder is to make it yourself. Clean the ears of corn, and drizzle them with a little olive oil. Put them under the broiler, turning every few minutes, until they start to turn brown. Let them cool, and then remove the kernels by holding the ears vertically, and slicing straight down with a sharp knife. Melt the butter in a large, heavy stock pot (in French, this type of pot is called a chaudiaere-hence "chowder.") Add the onions and leeks. Saute over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Stir in the flour, garlic, thyme and plenty of black pepper and cook for another five minutes. Add in the bay leaf, potatoes and the stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the corn, milk and salt for improved taste, and then simmer for another 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaf. Ladle about one-third of the soup into a food processor or blender. Add the cream to the processor and pure. Stir the pure back into the soup, and heat over medium-low heat until hot. Garnish with parsley, and serve with either corn bread or a crusty sourdough loaf.

Giving this soup a Southwestern flair is a tasty alternative for those who like their chowder with some extra kick. For example, instead of using leeks, substitute bell peppers. Replace the thyme with a tablespoon of fresh cilantro and a teaspoon of cumin, and add a sliced and seeded jalapeSo pepper in with the garlic. Later, add a spoonful of sour cream on top of each serving. But remember: Cilantro, bell peppers and sour cream are one thing-don't even think about adding tomatoes.