It was a bit chilly out, and thus a perfect night for New England clam chowder. I have tried to slim this down before by using 1% milk and potato starch, but it just doesn't work; this is not diet food, nor do I claim that it is.
First, drain two cans of boiled clams, reserving the clam juice. If the clam juice makes up less than a cup, add enough water to make a full cup. Put the juice in a pan with three cubed potatoes, four chopped celery stalks, a bit of dried thyme, and one chopped onion and bring to a boil; once it's boiling, turn down the heat and let it simmer until the potatoes are tender.
Next, add 2 1/2 cups cream, a bit of poultry seasoning, and three chopped carrots; let this simmer for at least 20 minutes or until thickened. Finally, add your clams and two strips of diced rendered salt pork; make sure they're rinsed, because despite the fact that they're boiled and canned there can still be shell fragments and those aren't fun. I know a lot of you are saying that you've never seen salt pork in clam chowder, and I'll tell you that my family's from Massachusetts and that's how we've always made it. Salt pork adds an extra oomph that you can't get any other way. Also, the reason you add the clams last is, all they need to do is warm up and they get really rubbery if you overcook them.
Will, as always, loved it. What really shocked me was, we had the window open because it was really nice out and we don't have a screen door; evidently, people were walking around wondering what smelled so good, and raved about the smell of the food more than the kids did about the candy!
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