New England Clam Chowder

During my trips to Boston when I used work for a publishing firm, I would sometimes just order clam chowder when I was too busy trying to catch deadlines for the show dailies. Here's a hearty classic soup that is best for that cold rainy day when you're just lazy to fix up a large meal.


Open up a can of baby clams or if you need fresh ones you can buy baby clams at your favorite seafood store and boil them. If you cannot find baby clams you can use big ones, boil them and just chop them up into tiny bits. Place the stock aside and chop up a couple of celery stalks, and a large potato and some parsley. In a pot, heat up a few tablespoons of butter and add a tablespoon of flour and mix thoroughly. Add the chopped ingredients and stir for a minute or two. Add the clam stock and if you have a cup chicken stock, add them too and bring to a boil until the potatoes are done. Add a cup of cream or milk and sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.


Carve the top and hollow out the inside of a sourdough bread and pour the chowder adding bits of the hollowed out bread. Sprinkle some chopped parsley and serve hot!