Emeril Lagasse's Clam Chowder!

Nothing warms the soul in winter better then a bowl of delicious home made soup!

Hi guys,

Its the middle of winter for Melbourne here brrrrrrrrrr....I find that my favourite things to eat in winter is some fresh home made soup which I know always leaves me feeling warm right to my frozen fingers and toes!!! hehe according to my boyfriend, I also have a frozen nose in winter : P

This is Emeril Lagasse's recipe for Clam Chowder. I used fresh clams instead of can clams because fresh ingredients are always better to use if it was available to you. Besides, I don't think they sell clams in a can here in Australia, correct me if I'm wrong hehe

This recipe was absolutely delicious and so tasty!!!!! First time making and eating clam chowder and its definitely one to go into my secret stash of awesome recipes hehe the soup was light and full of flavours, with just the right balance of everything!

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

250g bacon, medium diced

1 cup chopped leeks

1 cup chopped yellow onions

1/2 cup chopped celery

1 carrot, peeled and diced

3 bay leaves

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1/2 cup flour

500g potatoes, peeled and diced

4 cups clam juice (I used 2 cups of salt reduced chicken stock, and 2 cups of clam juice from cooking the fresh clams) 

2 cups thick cream

1 kilo of fresh clams (washed, and cooked in a saucepan with 1 cup of water, the water used to cook the clam will be used for the remainder 2 cups of stock)

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

Salt and pepper

Fresh crusty bread, sliced and toasted in the oven with some olive oil.

Method:

1. In a large pot, over medium-high heat, render the bacon, until crispy, about 8 minutes. Stir in the leeks, onions, celery, and carrots. Saute for about 2 minutes or until the vegetables start to wilt. 
2. Season the vegetables with pepper. Add the bay leaves and thyme. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add the potatoes. Stir in the clam juice and chicken stock. Bring the liquid up to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer the mixture until the potatoes are fork tender, about 12 minutes. Add the cream and bring up to simmer.
3. Remove about 70% of the cooked clams from their shell and discard shell. Roughly chop the clam  meat into smaller pieces. Leave the other 30% of clams in their shell. Add all the clams (meat and clam in shell) and simmer for 2 minutes. Stir in the parsley. Season with salt and pepper if needed. Ladle into shallow bowls and serve with crusty bread pieces.

Important tip: Don't add any salt until the very last minute and only if needed, the clam juice is already salty and you don't need to add anymore salt unless you really want to! 

   

Sprinkle on more fresh parsley to serve! Enjoy!!!

Keep warm my dear readers!! Itl be a while before we will be eating ice-cream again hehe though the cold weather has never stopped me from having ice-cream before hehe 

Happy eating!!!

Fat Pom Pom