New England Clam Chowder

By á-2469

Serve this hearty, simple soup in a bread bowl for a fun presentation. Pair it with a tossed green salad.

Ingredients

• 4 (6 1/2 ounce) cans chopped clams, udrained
• 2 ( 8 ounce) bottles clam juice
• 4 bacon slices
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3 cups cubed red potato
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 3 fresh parsley sprigs
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• Fresh thyme sprigs (optional)

Preparation

Step 1

1. Drain clams through a colander into a bowl, reserving liquid and clams. Combine liquid and clam jiuce.

2. Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 teaspoons drippings in pan. Crumble bacon; set aside. Add onion, celery, and garlic to pan; saute 8 minutes or until tender. Add clam juice mixture, potato, and next 4 ingredients; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until potato is tender.

3. Combine milk and flour, stirring with a whisk until smooth; add to pan. Stir in clams and half-and-half. Cook 5 minutes. Discard parsley srigs and bay leaf. Sprinkle with bacon. Garnish with thyme sprigs, if desired.


Nutritional Information:
Calories 194, fat 5.4 g (sat 2.7g, mono 1.9g, poly 0.4g); protein 12.3g; carb 23.7g; fiber 1.4g; chol 32mg; iron 2.2g; sodium 639mg; calc 11mg