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SERIOUSLY SIMPLE: An hommage to clam chowder perfect for a summer first course

By Diane Rossen Worthington, Tribune Media Services on

Freshly ground black pepper

3 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 small onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 ears corn, kernels cut off the cob

24 fresh littleneck clams, scrubbed

1/4 cup dry white wine

2 tablespoons creme fraiche

 

1 tablespoon butter

Several sprigs fresh mint leaves, chopped, for garnishing

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F.

2. Toss the potatoes with the oil on a rimmed baking sheet or casserole dish and season with salt and pepper. Roast them until the potatoes are slightly tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool, then slice into 1/2-inch rounds.

3. Heat a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook it until the fat is rendered and the bacon is just browned, about 7 minutes. Add the onions and garlic and sweat by cooking them until they are tender but not browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the sliced potatoes, corn, and clams and season with salt and pepper. Pour in the wine and cover the pot to steam the clams for about 10 minutes. When the clams are completely open, transfer them with the vegetables and bacon to serving bowls or plates with a slotted spoon, leaving the liquid in the pot. (Discard any clams that don't open).

4. Stir the creme fraiche and butter into the pot and simmer over medium-low heat until slightly thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and spoon the sauce over the clams and veggies. Garnish with the mint.

(Diane Rossen Worthington is an authority on new American cooking. She is the author of 18 cookbooks, including most recently "Seriously Simple Parties" (Chronicle Books, 2012), and also a James Beard award-winning radio show host. You can contact her at www.seriouslysimple.com.)


 

 

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