The Sunday Dinner: Chowder Power

It's the 5th of July. The day after. By now your belly must be full of barbecue and your firework quota met for yet another year. Suffice it to say, you've celebrated, and as such are probably not too keen on diving right in to the kitchen. If you are the resilient type however, and a little bit of home cooking is exactly what you need to get your life back in order, than this hearty Sunday Dinner should be just what the doctor ordered.

New England Clam and Corn Chowder with Herbs


Ingredients (serves 4 to 5)
5 thick cut slices of bacon - cut into half-inch pieces
1 large onion - chopped
3 large carrots - peeled and chopped
1.25 teaspoons of dried thyme
.75 teaspoon crushed and dried rosemary
4 tablespoons of all purpose flour
4 cups of whole milk
1 (8 ounce) white skinned potato - cut into half-inch cubes
3 (6.5 ounce) cans of chopped clams in juice
1 (8.75 ounce) can of corn kernels - drained
chopped fresh parsley

Fry the bacon in a pan over medium heat until it gets crispy, and then take it out of the pan to drain on a paper towel. Throw the onion, carrots, thyme, and rosemary into the pan to sautae in the left over bacon grease for about 5 minutes, sprinkling with salt and pepper as you see fit.

Next, transfer all of that into a big pot and add in the flour, stirring for 1 or two minutes until its mixed up evenly. Once you've done that, gradually add in the milk (stirring constantly) as you bring it to a boil.

Reduce to medium heat, and continue to let it cook until it reaches your desired thickness. Make sure to keep stirring throughout. Once you have that, add in the potatoes, the corn, and the clams (with the juice) and then bring the whole thing back to a boil one more time.

Bring the temperature back down again to medium-low and let the chowder simmer until the potatoes are cooked (about 10 minutes). Again, keep stirring so it doesn't congeal, and toss in some more salt and pepper.

When its all done, sprinkle on the bacon and chopped parsley, then serve up healthy portions in big bowls with hunks of fresh-baked bread. If that doesn't stick to your bones, than I don't know what will.

This is the original recipe as seen in bon appetite. For the most part, its the same as what I put up here, with the exception of a few ingredient / cooking changes, so check it out too if you're so inclined.