Comfort Food, Easy-Style

Here we go, as promised. I served this Chowder to a friend who came for a very casual, easy dinner over the holidays. To accompany it, I made fresh bread from this ever-so-easy and so satisfying recipe —   Some Tormaresca Chardonnay, one of the only Chardonnays I really like (soon, I’m going to write the follow-up post I promised months ago on our visit to this Puglian wine estate) . . . and to finish, we treated our sweet teeth with another easy recipe —Gingerbread Pear Pudding

Seafood Chowder

In a large pot, saute 1 diced fennel bulb and one
medium-sized onion in 1 or 2 tablespoons of butter.  As onion becomes translucent, add 1 or 2
finely diced carrots, then 1 chopped yellow or red pepper.  Stir enough to avoid sticking or burning –
keep heat at a low-medium, cook for about 
5 minutes, letting veggies “sweat,” as my dad used to term it. 

                Sprinkle
in about 2 tablespoons of flour, stirring over same low-medium heat for a
minute or two, and then  stir in about a
cup of white wine (you could substitute chicken stock or water or clam nectar
or even apple juice here, but the wine is nice and then you’ve got something to
drink with your meal, right?).

                Keeping
the heat low to medium,  stirring gently,
add in 1 or 2 medium potatoes, diced. 
Gradually stir in 2 or 3 cups of stock (I use chicken but vegetarian
could work as well) – depending on your time frame, you might choose to turn
the heat just a bit higher  until the
potatoes are tender. You will also add, if you have it, the nectar from a can
of clams (and you might even add an extra can of the nectar which can be bought
separately).

                When
the potatoes are tender and you’re within 20 minutes of sitting down to eat,
you can add your seafood: I generally include a fillet of cod, but almost any
fish would do – sliced into bite-size piece. Other possibilities for a pleasing
combination:  150g of shrimp; 150 g of
scallops (chopped in half or quartered if the larger Digby scallop; left alone
if the smaller swimming scallops). I always add, for flavour, about 150g of
smoked salmon – lox trimmings are great for this and the price is usually
decent. My chowders usually rely on a can of baby clams. And I also like to
include whole oysters, along with the nectar they’re packed in – not everyone
likes these, but if you do, it’s easy enough to make sure they don’t get served
into some bowls.

 For a special dinner,
I throw all of these in, but a quick pop in to a fishmonger’s will reveal that
to be an expensive option.  I could be
quite happy with a version that features only the canned clams, the smoked
salmon, and whatever white fish fillets are on sale that day. In that case, I
might throw in a can of niblets corn to compensate (and because I like that
contrasting crunch and colour!)

Now where was I before I got distracted with all the
options?  — Oh yes, your potatoes are
tender, you’ve added whatever seafood you choose, and now you’ll want to add
2-4 cups of milk (I’d go at least 2%, and for some occasions you might want to
include a bit of cream or whole milk – ours was all 2% last night). Season to
taste with salt and pepper – maybe some thyme as well. Heat slowly and
carefully until just before the boil – fish will be just opaque. Your chowder is now ready to ladle into bowls and serve. (If you have any left over, it’s lovely the next day for lunch!)

Obviously, this turns out a bit differently every time I make it. If you make up a version, let me know what variations you introduce and I’d love to know how you enjoyed it. Ditto for that peasant-bread-in-a-bowl recipe and the Gingerbread Pear Pudding.