Seafood Chowda

This weekend my daughter Katie made a great big pot of seafood chowder (chowda, she says, in a mock-New England accent) and it was GOOD!

We’d been to the Hand Melon Farm stand in Greenwich, New York, on Friday and picked up some nice veggies. We left with two huge tomatoes, radishes, celery, and Montauk corn – a baker’s dozen – and of course a sampling of their chocolate raspberry and chocolate cheesecake fudge (just to see if it was any good, and it was!). The stand is directly across from the Washington County Fairgrounds. The fair was in full swing and it was fun to see the rides in operation. Henry (now 16 months) was mesmerized by one ride that went forward at full speed, and then backward, (Tilt-a-Whirl?) all the while making interesting whistling and clanging noises. There's something about a fair and summer. Very Americana.

It's always good to travel east a few miles. It's a beautful ride across the Hudson River from Saratoga through Schuylerville and on to Greenwich. The sun was out and it was a warm, sunny late summer day, perfect for a short jaunt.

We had the corn that night (delicious) and there were many ears left over, so we decided to make a chowder the next day. We had a lot of the ingredients on hand and stopped by the store the next morning for seafood.

I was out running errands when Katie got started. When I came back, the aroma was heavenly, as if I were in a seaside restaurant! I couldn’t wait to ladle me a bowl of that chowda. It was GREAT and here’s the recipe in case you find yourself with a few extra ears of corn and most of the fixings. It’s well worth the ingredients and the time it takes to put it together.

Katie’s Seafood Chowda

3 strips bacon
1 Vidalia onion, diced
1 c. chopped carrot
1 c. chopped celery
4 red potatoes, skin on, diced
Kernels from 3 ears cooked, sweet corn
3 cloves chopped garlic
3 tbs. cornstarch
32 oz. seafood stock
6 oz. bottle clam juice
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig dill
Salt
Pepper
½ lb. bay scallops
1 lb. medium shrimp, cleaned, tails removed
2 cans chopped clams
1 pt. heavy cream

Cook bacon in large stock pot to render fat. Once crisp, remove bacon and add onion. Saute until soft. Add cornstarch and stir until incorporated. Add corn kernels, carrot, celery, garlic, and potatoes. Saute until vegetables are soft. Add herbs, salt, pepper, and then stock and clam juice. Bring to a simmer. Add seafood and cream and simmer for about a half hour or longer until it thickens up a bit. Remove sprigs of thyme and dill. Ladle into bowls and garnish with crumbled bacon.

Photo credit: http://www.marketpride.com.au/Portals/6/RecipeImages/Thumbnails/SeafoodChowder_Damper_thumb.jpg

Dinner in the Country

Traveling east of Saratoga Springs last Thursday evening, my friend Claire (of Bitchin’ Bette’s fame) and I drove to have dinner with her sister Kathleen and her husband Ed. Recent transplants from Westchester, PA, Kathleen's and Ed’s new home sits on six acres on a quiet country road somewhere between Greenwich and the Vermont border! There’s a garden started, and six new chickens have begun laying eggs. Before we arrived, Claire and I stopped at the Hand Melon Farm and picked up Georgia peaches and nectarines.

Upon our arrival, Kathleen greeted us with South Hamptons, a refreshing non-alcoholic drink of tonic water, lime juice, bitters, and a slice of lime. Just a splash of bitters gives the drink a pretty pink color. Perfect for a summer night. Ed makes a wicked Manhattan, but I wanted to be able to function. Claire and I always talk about how much we love Ed’s “Mahhnhaaatans.” That’s what that drink does to me!

We sat chatting in the kitchen while Kathleen effortlessly (it seemed) prepared chicken a la king. She’d picked up fresh asparagus and a chicken at a local farmers market. I remember this dish from my childhood, though ours was prepared by S.S. Pierce (an especially good specialty food company) and my parents had to open many small cans to feed a family of nine! Kathleen’s version stirred up happy memories of my family enjoying that meal together. I watched as Kathleen thickened chicken stock with flour, added mushrooms, pimento and shredded chicken, and I’m sure other ingredients, but I wasn’t paying complete attention since I talk a lot! We ate dinner outside on their screened-in porch. The chicken a la king was served with brown rice, perfectly steamed asparagus, and a simple salad of baby greens with Kathleen’s own vinaigrette. It was perfect.

For dessert, Kathleen served sliced organic strawberries topped with a little bit of vanilla ice cream. As we enjoyed our meal, we were entertained by a mother bird feeding her young in a nest perched just outside the porch. There were all kinds of little country animals and birds on display. Bunnies, hummingbirds, squirrels – as if Walt Disney himself had set the stage for our beautiful evening.

Here is Kathleen's recipe:

CHICKEN A LA KING

2 TBS butter or substitute
3 TBS flour
¾ tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
¾ cup half and half or canned skim milk
½ cup hot water
1 tsp instant chicken bouillon
2 cups cut up chicken or turkey (cooked)
1 can mushroom stems and pieces (small can)
2 TBS chopped pimiento (or cut up roasted red peppers from jar)


Melt butter, add flour, salt pepper and gradually add milk, stirring constantly. Add hot water and bouillon. Stir until thickened. Add remaining ingredients and cook until heated through. Serve on toast points, over rice, or puff pastry. Serves 4


Photo by Jeannie Eddy

Next blog: dogs

Memories of Strawberry Shortcake

After a nice run of beautiful weather, it's raining today. Days like this pull me in to the kitchen, with ideas of baking something sweet and summery to chase those clouds away. Within a few weeks it will be strawberry season here in upstate New York. Memories of strawberry picking at the Hand Melon Farm in nearby Greenwich, New York (pronounced Green-wich unlike our Connecticut neighbor) are priming my taste buds for the strawberry shortcake we used to make for Greenfield Elementary School's Spring Fair. My sister-in-law Carolyn and I would take our kids with various and assorted vessels and park them between rows and rows of gorgeous ripe berry plants. About as many went into their stomachs as their pots, so we got the better of that deal! Once we were home, we'd make a real project out of it. Carolyn (a GREAT cook, by the way) cleaned and hulled the strawberries and I baked the biscuits. Our shortcake used to be created in industrial quantities, but here's a fast and simple recipe to satisfy the crowd around your dinner table:

Berries:
1 quart of strawberries, washed, hulled, and sliced lengthwise
2 tbsp. to 1/4 c. granulated sugar, to taste (I like more!)
2 tbsp. orange juice

Allow the above ingredients to macerate (fancy word for sit and get juicy) at room temperature. Stir a few times while the biscuits are baking.

Make biscuits:
3 c. flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
4 tbsp. very cold butter, diced
1/2 c. plus 2 tbsp. half and half plus extra for brushing

Combine dry ingredients. Cut in cold butter until it's crumbly (smaller than pea-sized). Stir in half and half. On floured surface -- I use wax paper for easy clean-up -- pat into a 1" thick square. Work in more flour, a little at a time, if necessary. Cut large square into 9 smaller squares (3x3). Place squares on parchment paper (or greased surface) on cookie sheet. Brush surfaces with half-and half. Bake in preheated oven at 450 degrees F for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on rack.

Whipped cream:
1 pt. heavy or whipping cream
2 tbsp. confectioners sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Place ingredients in chilled bowl and beat until soft to medium-soft peaks form. Be careful not to over-beat. Chill until ready to use.

To assemble:

Split square biscuit. Layer bottom biscuit, berries and juice, whipped cream, top biscuit, berries and juice, and whipped cream.

Tomorrow's blog: Favorite Utensils ~ My New Kitchen's Must-Haves!