Saturday, June 11, 2022

Weekend Cooking: Chowderland by Brooke Dojny

Before I start my post for this week, I wanted to apologise for not having a linky in last week's post. I am not sure what I was doing, but somehow,  I completely forgot to do the second half of my post! Whoops!


Anyway...on with this week's post!




Soup weather is definitely here for us! It has been freezing here this week. Well, not freezing like a lot of people in other places experience but 12  degrees celsius (53 degrees fahrenheit) is cold!! 



We have a couple of different soups that we make each winter, but it is always nice to find a new recipe to try. Our two main soups are a pea and ham soup which my husband then puts some Dutch sausages into and the Bacon, Vegetable and Risoni soup that he now adds pork meatballs into. Occasionally we will also do pumpkin soup. It is, however, time to find a new recipe to try.



You may recall that several weeks ago now, I put a call out to ask if anyone had a good seafood chowder recipe. Tina and Jackie both came through with some recipe links for me to try, and then Raidergirl came through with some Canadian chowder recipes too.



Tina also mentioned this book, Chowderland by Brooke Dojny, and I was very surprised to see that my library had this available via digital download. 



Now I am going to come straight out and say that it is unlikely that I will cook much out of this cookbook. A lot of the base ingredients are not as accessible to us. For example, a lot of the recipes used canned clams or seafood as a base which we can't easily obtain



What I did love about this book is the little asides and titbits of information and the sheer variety of recipes. For example, the first section includes recipes for a Boston Style Creamy chowder, then Connecticut Shoreline Semi Clear Chowder, Milky Maine Steamer Chowder, Manhattan-Style Clam Chowder which includes tomatoes in the recipe (to quote the author "oh heresy").



It's not all regional recipes and it isn't only chowder in the book. There are also fish stews, bisques, gumbo as well as accompaniments such as bread and salad and some dessert!. For example there is recipe for a Bermuada Fish Chowder and a Portuguese Fish Stew. And while, I think of chowder as a particularly winter dish, there are spring chowders, and a Double Corn Summer Chowder, chowders made with turkey and beef. I guess what I am saying is that there is a huge variety of recipes in this book!



The first chowder I ever remember having is the quintessential chowder in a sour cream cob in San Francisco.  I know that there are probably chowder afficionadoes who would suggest that there are much better versions and much better ways to experience to a great chowder, but just the thought of it brings back such great memories! We are talking about heading to San Francisco next year (maybe!) and I am sure that we will find ourselves on the pier eating chowder!



And as for the chowders.... we ended up trying this recipe from Tina with some adaptations. Of course, we had to specifically order Old Bay Seasoning as it just isn't available in our supermarkets. However, we are thinking about using it as part of the batter next time we make fried chicken as suggested on the bottle




Seafood Chowder



2 onions
1 tablespoon olive oil or butter
1/2 cup white wine (optional)
3 peeled potatoes
A bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1 1/2 cups cream 
3 fillets firm white fish
Handful green prawns
Handful scallops


Saute onions in olive oil or butter. When they are soft add wine and turn up the heat until it reduces. Add potatoes and seasonings, and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes.


Heat (but don't boil) the cream in a separate pot, be careful not to boil.  Add the cream and the fish to the potato mix and cook another 10 minutes.


Serve with crusty bread and enjoy




I was a bit heavy handed with the Old Bay Seasoning so I will stick with just a teaspoon of seasoning next time.

And to finish, a quote from Moby Dick:

"Fishiest of all fishy places [on Nantucket] was the Try Pots, which well deserved it's name;  for the pots there were always boiling chowders. Chowders for breakfast, and chowder for dinner, and chowder for supper, till you began to look for fish-bones coming throough your clothes."

I'm not sure that I am ready to have chowder for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but we will have this one for dinner again!


I am also linking up with Souper Sunday hosted by Deb in Hawaii.


Weekly meals


Saturday - 
Sunday - Roast port, vegies.
Monday - One-pot chicken casserole with ciabatta roll, raisins and capers 
Tuesday - Birthday Dinner
Wednesday - Panissa Rice Alla Bolognese wtith capsicm and cheddar
Thursday - Creamy thyme & parmesan fettucine with pangrattato, mushroom & kale.
Friday - Takeaway Friday





Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

16 comments:

  1. I'm so happy, and honored, you like the recipes! If you send me your address I will send yuo some Old Bay :-) Seriously. I brought you an In My Kitchen post and a good wine this week.

    Happy birthday! We are June babies - mine was June 2.

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  2. I'm not a big seafood lover, despite living on the Texas Gulf Coast. I do like soups in winter, and I think I'd like to try the Seafood Chowder when winter arrives here later in the year.

    Happy birthday!

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    1. I like most seafood Deb, but not all!!

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  3. Thanks for the shoutout! Funny I associate chowder with the east coast of the US in the summer! Strange you can't find canned clams. I can now buy Old Bay here but used to have to buy in the States.

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    1. Soup is definitely winter for me Jackie!

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  4. By coincidence, I made Manhattan Clam Chowder for dinner last night. Canned clams are readily available here, and essential to the recipe (unless you live close to a fishing port and can get fresh ones). The rivalry between New York and Boston plays out in the condemnation of one tradition by the other, but as a midwesterner, I like both white and red clam chowder.

    best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. I haven't ever tried a red chowder! Maybe I should!

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  5. I am going to have to try a mixed seafood chowder, your recipe sounds great.

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  6. Interesting that you are now having winter just as it's finally warming up here for summer. I like soup during every season so I'm always up for soup. Since I'm vegan, chowder with a fish base just doesn't work for us.

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    1. I don't think there was a vegan version. Even when the recipe was vegie heavy it still had some bacon and things in it!

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  7. Chowders are among my favorite soups so thank you for sharing your post with Souper Sundays. I use Old Bay in so many things--seafood of course, on steamed or roasted shrimp but also in hummus and in potato salads. It's pretty versatile. ;-)

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  8. I love a good seafood chowder, but rarely make it because I don't live near the sea.

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