Monthly Archives: December 2012

Neil doesn’t have a lot of family traditions around Christmas time. But one that we both love is the fish chowder his family eats at holiday get togethers.* I was in the kitchen when his mom made this chowder just once, about five years ago. But with a few memories and the help of the internet I’ve cobbled together a pretty fair imitation!

Ingredients
1/2lb each cod and scallops, or pick your favorite 2-3 seafoods
1/2 of a large onion
3 yellow potatoes
3T butter
2 C milk
1 can evaporated milk
1 C frozen sweet corn
1/2tsp thyme, a bay leaf, salt, pepper, and other spices to taste

The first thing you notice is OMG the ingredients from the grocery store! What can I say, we don’t have a lot of fresh off the boat seafood out here. These are the things I remember of the chowder: Neil’s mom cooked the fish in the bottom of the pan first. She simmered the potatoes in milk, not stock. And the chowder was thickened with evaporated milk.**

So in an attempt to hold to tradition I’m not straying far from the basics and so this fish chowder really lets the seafood shine through.

I used 1/2lb each of scallops and cod. I seem to remember there were two types of fish and scallops, but for just 2 people this is what I settled on. I melted butter in the bottom of the pan, added 1/2 a large onion and let it cook until just translucent. Then I added the seafood.

I cooked this over medium high heat with the cover on until the cod was starting to fall apart. While they cooked I peeled and chopped 3 potatoes. There should be plenty of tasty juices in the bottom of the pan by now and I just threw the potatoes in there and added about 2 cups of milk.

This is the part I thought was sketchiest. I don’t think it’s a good idea to boil milk, and I remember thinking that same thing at the time. But she kept the temperature around medium so the chowder was just gently simmering and everything seems to work out! Oh, along with the potatoes I added thyme, salt, and lots of ground black pepper. I don’t think his mom used a bay leaf, but I certainly did. I managed (just barely) to resist the urge to add more herbs and spices.

Once the potatoes are just tender enough to pierce with a fork (about 25 minutes for me) add frozen sweet corn (~1 cup) a can of evaporated milk (12 oz) and check the seasonings. This is the point where you can turn the chowder down to low and keep it warm until the flavors have melded and all the guests have arrived.

Serve this soup with a nice white bread. I’ve made a loaf using half and half regular flour and the white whole wheat I was recommending last week.

*this always confuses me. Neil hates seafood, but he loves fish chowder, it’s the one exception…
**Actually I just remember milk from a can, but I’m assuming it was evaporated and not sweetened condensed – ’cause that would be gross.

I was feeling stumped for soup yesterday, so I wandered around the grocery store looking for possible soup ingredients. For a meal without a plan this one came together excellently well! It’s cheesy and herby and savory and delicious. That’s exactly what soup and bread night should be.

I used apple sausage in my soup but I suspect regular sausage would be just fine. Likewise I used squash, but I suspect carrots or sweet potatoes would be good too. Finally, when you’re selecting apples pick a variety that will hold its shape pretty well once cooked. Brown the sausage with some onion and garlic in butter. Toss in some flour to soak up the extra fat, push it all around and add the chicken broth. Toss in the diced squash and whatever spices you like (I used sage, thyme, and fines herbs from penzeys.) When the squash is cooked add cheese tortellini and peeled, diced apple. Cook ’till the pasta is done, and serve!

This cheesy bread is the real winner though. It is light, fluffy, and has THREE kinds of cheese! How could you go wrong?

Ingredients
1.5 C flour (I used 1C all purpose and 1/2C of white whole wheat from King Arthur’s. This flour has amazing flavor, and isn’t heavy like regular whole wheat*)
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking soda

1/2 C grated cheddar cheese
1/4 C chopped green onion (or scallions)
1 T fines herbs (chervil, parsley, chives, and tarragon)

1 egg
1/2 C cream cheese or marscapone
1 C milk
3 T butter, melted
1 T grated parmesan

Preheat the oven to 350F and grease a 9×9 baking dish.
Whisk together all those dry ingredients in the first section.
Next toss in the cheese, onions, and herbs so they’re coated with the flour mix.
Finally whisk the soft cheese and butter, mix in the egg and milk. Fold this into the dry ingredients and pour it into the pan. Sprinkle the parmesan on top and pop it into the oven for 20-25 minutes (until the toothpick comes out clean, you know the drill)

*two product placements in a single post! Craziness. I feel like I should say neither of these companies even know I exist, I link them here because I like them.