Corn Soup with Roasted Chiles and Smoked Gouda Cheese

It's Soup season for me. It's Hatch Chile Season too. I love Smoked Gouda Cheese.
Here's the recipe that combines them all well:

4 TBS butter
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 pound of red potatoes, skin on, sliced
1 TBS fresh thyme
6 C water
4 C frozen corn
3 roasted hatch chiles, seeded, peeled, diced ( you can use 1 (4oz) cans of diced green chiles, well drained, if you don't have access to Roasted Hatch Chiles.
1 C half and half
1 C grated smoked gouda cheese
salt , to taste
chopped chives for garnish

in a large saute pan on medium heat:
butter
onion
saute for 10 minutes
transfer to a slow cooker and add potatoes, thyme,water
Cove and cook on low for 4 hours

Use an immersion blender and blend some of the potatoes, not all of them, just enough to thicken it

Add:
corn
chiles
half and half
cheese
salt
continue cooking for 30 minutes more

Serve garnished with chives

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!