Clam Chowder

A pot of tasty clam soup with freshly baked bread is always a winner for a big party of guests. The clams we found were glorious, but you can also use mussels or any other shellfish.

Ingredients:

500g clams, in their shells
1 onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 chilli, chopped
Handful thyme leaves
Handful parsley, chopped
2 bay leaves
500ml white wine
500ml cream
500ml stock
250g packet of bacon, chopped
3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
Olive oil

Method:

You can add the bacon and potatoes to the soup pot and cook them in the soup, but we prefer to cook them separately.

Fry the bacon until crispy and set aside.

Cook the potatoes in boiling water until soft and set aside.

Place a large pot on the fire and start by adding a little olive oil, the onions, celery, garlic, chilli and herbs. Cook for a few minutes until the onions soften. Also leave some parsley aside for serving.

Add the clams and the white wine, then cover with a lid and cook for a few minutes.

Add the stock and cream and heat up.

Mix together the flour and butter. Slowly add a little of this into the soup to thicken.

When everything is nice and glossy and creamy, add the bacon and potatoes and serve with parsley and crusty bread