Friends Food Family

Ham Chowder with Leeks and Cabbage

We love hearty soups and stews. As the fall and winter weather begins to settle in on New England, Jeff and I begin looking for one pot, comfort food meals that are easy and delicious! This reciepe for Ham Chowder with Leeks and Cabbage fits the menu.

 

A few weeks ago, the Boston Globe featured an article called Chowder for Landlubbers. It showcased three chowder recipes for those who don't like seafood. It was perfect timing as we are always looking for a hearty stew or chili to make on Sunday afternoons, for two reasons...

1. We can start the process earlier in the day, having dinner ready at a reasonable hour.
2. It's football season and when we have friends come over, it's a perfect chowder that's a meal.

We were heading to the grocery store so I grabbed the article and figured I'd pick up the ingredients to one of the dishes. As we looked at the choices - ham, chicken or quinoa, we decided that Ham Chowder with Leeks and Cabbage was perfect. For me, I love any recipe that is chock full of vegetable...unless it is chocolate, which is a whole different story. We grabbed, yukon potatoes, leeks, savoy cabbage, a few ham steaks and we were ready to go.

It took about an hour to get everything together and then it called for a 30 minute resting period, which was perfect. I let the chowder sit until we were ready to reheat it and enjoy the football game. The smell in the house was amazing and I couldn't wait to relax and enjoy a bowl. With friends around the kitchen island, we enjoyed bowls of Ham Chowder with crusty bread, delicious! It was very hearty, as every spoonful brought up potatoes, ham and cabbage. The broth, though it had cream, didn't overpower the flavors in the dish. Having a few extra dishes left at the end of the evening became perfect lunches for the week. Like many soups, stews, chilis and chowders, this tasted better the following day. YUM!

So, as you are heading out this weekend and trying to figure out what you can make for the tailgate gathering or sports event, think hearty dish, think Ham Chowder with Leeks and Cabbage. You won't be disappointed (your guest won't either!)

Ingredients of the Ham Chowder with Leeks and Cabbage:

• 5 slices of applewood smoked bacon
• 1-1/2 pounds of ham steak, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 celery stick, chopped
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 2 teaspoons of finely chopped (fresh) rosemary
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cups of chicken broth
• 1-1/2 pounds of mini Yukon or red potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1/2 pound of savoy cabbage, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 2 medium leeks, cut in half and then cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 cup of heavy cream
• 1/2 cup of freshly chopped parsley
• salt and pepper 

Preparation:

1. In a large soup pot, over medium heat, cook the bacon until crispy, remove and break into small pieces, set aside.

2. Pour off and reserve half the bacon fat, return the pot to the medium heat and begin cooking the ham until it begins to brown slightly, about 8-10 minutes. Remove the ham and set aside.

3. Pour the reserved bacon fat into the pot and add the onions, carrots, celery, rosemary and bay leaves. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt, stir the vegetables and cover for 10-15 minutes or until the vegetables are softened. 

4. Add the potatoes and chicken broth, turning the heat to medium high. Once there is a strong simmer, reduce heat to medium low and cover. Simmer for 8 minutes.

5. Add the leeks and cabbage and continue to simmer, covered, until the potatoes begin to soften, about 8 minutes.

6. Remove 1-1/2 cups of vegetables with a bit of broth. Puree or blend the mixture and then pour it back into the pot. 

7. Turn off the heat and add the ham and heavy cream. Stir and then adjust the taste with salt and pepper. Let the chowder rest for 30 minutes.

8. Gently reheat chowder over medium heat. Do not allow the mixture to boil. Before serving, remove the bay leaves and adjust taste with salt and pepper. 

9. Stir in the parsley and ladle into bowls. Top with crumbled bacon and enjoy. When ready, refill your bowl. It's that good!

10. Savor each spoonful! Feeds 6-10 people.

Written by Tricia White

Clam Chowder (Chowdah) with Bacon - Thomas Keller Style

Back a few weeks ago, we (in New England) got to enjoy some early spring weather. We had a weekend of 70 degree weather which is uncommon in March. As we were enjoying drinks by the fireplace, I said to Jeff that I would love to make some clam chowder. 

Clam chowder is one of those recipes that Jeff and I haven't made. It could be because we have gone to area restaurants and have enjoyed a great cup or bowl of New England clam chowdah, why would we need to compete?

Just think, we have made 300+ recipes over the past 2-1/2 years. We are always in search of trying something new and interesting but clam chowder just wasn't on the list. Jeff found a great recipe in one of our favorite cookbook from Thomas Keller, ad hoc at home. This was a three part recipe where you create your broth, your potatoes and clams in separate capacities. The broth includes leeks, onions, garlic, milk and heavy cream. The potatoes are cooked with a sachet of peppercorns, thyme and garlic. The clams are cooked in white, shallots and thyme. The combination together was amazing, add bacon bits and chives as a topper, it was perfect. The flavor was rich, creamy and delicious. It reminded me of summer which made it a perfect dish with the warm weather. 

Now that we have made our own clam chowder, it's going to be hard to order the same dish at our favorite restaurants, but that's ok...we have a great recipe as a back-up.

(Adapted from ad hoc at home, Clam Chowder with Bacon)

Ingredients:

Broth
8 ounces of Applewood or thick wood smoked bacon
Canola Oil

2 cups of coarsely chopped leeks (white and light green parts only)
2 cups of coarsely chopped onions
5 garlic cloves
4 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup of flour
3 cups of whole milk
3 cups of heavy cream
3 tablespoons of finely chopped chives

Potatoes
Kosher salt
2 pounds of yukon gold potatoes, diced to 1/2"
1 cloth sachet of 10 peppercorns, 1 bay leaf, 2 thyme sprigs, and 1 smashed garlic clove

Clams
4 pounds Littleneck or Manila clams
1-1/4 cup of kosher salt
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup of chopped shallots
2 thyme sprigs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup of dry white wine

Preparation:

Heat some olive oil in an 8 to 10 quart stockpot over medium heat. 
Add the bacon, reduce the heat to low, and let the fat render for 20 to 25 minutes, 
stirring from time to time; the bacon should color but not crisp. 
Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the pan.

Add the garlic, onion, and leeks to the pan and stir to coat with bacon fat.

After leeks are coated with oil, sprinkle with salt, cover with parchment paper
and cook very slowly for 30 to 35 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. 
Remove and discard lid. Watch the video for paper cover. (see bottom of article)

Put the potatoes, sachet, and 2 tsp salt in a large saucepan, add cold water to cover, 
bring to a simmer, and cook until the potatoes are just tender, about 10 minutes. 
Drain and spread on a tray to cool; discard the sachet.

When the vegetables are tender, increase the heat to medium and add the butter. 
Once the butter has melted, stir in the flour to coat the vegetables and 
cook for 2-3 minutes to take away the raw flour taste.

Whisk in the milk and cream, season to taste with salt and pepper, 
and bring to a very low simmer.

To clean clams, put the clams in a large clean bowl. Mix 8 cups of cold water
with the 1-1/2 cups of salt. Stir until mostly dissolved. Pour enough water over 
the clams to slightly cover. Allow them to sit for 5 minutes to purge them of sand.
Repeat. Drain the clams and rinse under cold water. 

Melt the 2 Tbsp butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. 
Add the shallots and thyme sprigs, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, 
for about 1 minute, until the shallots are tender. Add the wine, bring to a boil, 
and cook for 2 minutes to evaporate some of the alcohol.

Add the clams, cover the pan, and cook for about 4 minutes, removing the clams 
as they open. Strain all the clam liquid through a fine-mesh conical strainer into a bowl. 
Shell the clams and set aside.

Gently stir clam liquid to taste into the soup (avoid any sand that may have 
settled in the bottom of the bowl.) Season the chowder with salt and pepper to taste.

Loosely chop the clams and gently stir them in with the potatoes.

Spread the bacon in a small frying pan and crisp over medium-high heat. 
Garnish the soup with the bacon and the chives.

Boston Globe's Fish Chowder with Proscuitto - The BEST!

 
 

Here is part two of our Boston Globe article, "Hake goes from trash fish to treasure". This Fish Chowder with Proscuitto is the wonderful results of last night's meal Hake Wrapped in Proscuitto.

I think I will just start by saying this is the BEST fish chowder I have ever tasted. Hands down, better than clam chowder, too.

Take out those three servings of fish and potatoes from our last blog article, Hake Wrapped in Proscuitto. Take the proscuitto off the fish and chop coarsely. Do the same for the fish and potatoes. 

Note that we did things a little differently: 

1. We used scrod as the white fish since we couldn't find hake.

2. We used seafood broth, which we found in the broth section at the supermarket.

3. Ours didn't look as golden as theirs so we added a few threads of saffron.

This recipe took us about fifteen minutes to put together. It was a nice hearty chowder with rich flavors. It wasn't thick but it was creamy and the fish and potatoes gave it body. It happened to be rainy and cold the night we served it, so it hit the spot for warming you up.

We were so impressed with the taste of the chowder, we are going to make a pot of the chowder the next time since this recipe only feeds 4. We will take the time to cook the fish and potatoes the night before and then quickly make the chowder the following day.

If you want to impress your friends and family, cook the Hake Wrapped in Proscuitto next weekend and serve this chowder as a meal or appetizer at your next gathering. You will mark this recipe as a favorite under "The BEST fish chowder...EVA!" 

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons of butter

6 scallions, chopped using both green and white pieces

Proscuitto from pieces of fish, chopped coarsely

Sliced potatoes from fish, chopped coarsely

2 cups of clam or fish broth

2 cups of heavy cream

3 pieces of cooked fish, flaked into large pieces

2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley

Salt and Pepper

Preparation:

1. In a soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the scallions and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes.

2. Add the prosciutto and continue cooking, stirring often, for 2 minutes.

3. Add the potatoes, clam or fish broth, cream, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer 3 minutes.

4. Add the fish and cook 2 minutes or until the fish is heated through. Taste the chowder for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if you like.

5. Ladle the chowder into bowls. Sprinkle with parsley.