New England Clam Chowder with Homemade Bread Bowls

The high here in Orange County actually hit below 70 degrees.

Fahrenheit.

I saw it on my weather app on my phone a couple days ago and excitedly declared the day to the husband soup day! I asked him his most favoritest soup ever, and after a few moments of deep pondering, he decided on clam chowder in a bread bowl.

Done.

 I was feeling extra romantical today and felt that hearts were a necessary part of dinner.

For the bread bowls, I used a recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe. I can do bread, but I am by no means an expert, so I was not about to get creative or innovative with this aspect of the meal.

Bread Bowls (makes 8 bread bowls)

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast (use 1 tablespoon instant yeast)
2 1/2 cups warm water
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
7 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornmeal

In your KitchenAid, dissolve yeast in warm water and let sit about ten minutes until frothy.

Add to the frothy mixture the salt, oil, and 4 c flour on a low speed. Slowly add in the remaining flour a 1/2 c at a time until the dough is no longer sticky. You do want this dough to be a bit firmer than other dough you may have made for rolls, as you want this to be more dense.

Knead for about 5 minutes or until dough is smooth, shiny, and elastic.

Spray inside of large bowl with oil and roll dough in oil so it is coated. Cover bowl with a light tea towel and place in warm, draft-free place until it has doubled in bulk, almost 1 hour.

 I forgot to take a picture of the doubled dough before I punched it down.

So pretend you have a bowl of bulging dough that you collapse and punch down, and then form into 8 dough balls. Sprinkle two cookie sheets with cornmeal, and place 4  dough balls on each cookie sheet. Slit top of each ball with a sharp knife. Place cookie sheets back into warm place to rise again until doubled, about 30-45 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

 Bake 18 minutes, until lightly browned. Set on cooling racks to cool.

Now for the creamy, soul-warming comfort of this comfort meal...
I've always loved my Grandma Packard's recipe (an English woman herself), as well as every other chowder I've tasted. I thought I'd venture out and create my own!

New England Clam Chowder

2 T EVOO
4 carrots
3 celery stalks
1 leek
4 red potatoes
3 cloves garlic
1 can clam broth (or 'juice')
2 cans chopped clams (with juice)
1/2 c butter
1/2 c flour
1 quart half-and-half
2 t salt
1/2 t red pepper flakes
fresh-cracked black pepper

Chop all the veggies.

Leek? What's a leek you say?

It's basically a green onion (or scallion) on steroids. BUT leeks soften and kinda melt into whatever you cook them with, which is why I like them in soups.

What the heck do you do with the thing?

Leeks usually have a lot of dirt all up in them, so you have to peel back the layers and rinse them off individually. Most of the green is tougher than the white, so I usually discard those. Flatten out the layers and chop them up.

Saute the carrots in the olive oil until slightly softened. Add in the rest of the veggies, the clams and the clam broth. Simmer until potatoes have softened.

 In separate saucepan, melt butter, then whisk in flour to make a roux.

Slowly whisk in the half-and-half until mixed thoroughly.

Add this mixture to the veggies, heat on low without simmering or bubbling, as you want to keep the half-and-half from curdling. Add spices.

Now get creative and cut your best heart out of the bread bowls.

Ladle the soup into the bowls and serve.

You know the best part is dunking the extra bread.

Especially when it's a cute little heart...

Bread Bowls

Ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast (use 1 tablespoon instant yeast)

2 1/2 cups warm water

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

7 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon cornmeal

Instructions

In your KitchenAid, dissolve yeast in warm water and let sit about ten minutes until frothy.

Add to the frothy mixture the salt, oil, and 4 c flour on a low speed. Slowly add in the remaining flour a 1/2 c at a time until the dough is no longer sticky. You do want this dough to be a bit firmer than other dough you may have made for rolls, as you want this to be more dense.

Knead for about 5 minutes or until dough is smooth, shiny, and elastic.

Spray inside of large bowl with oil and roll dough in oil so it is coated. Cover bowl with a light tea towel and place in warm, draft-free place until it has doubled in bulk, almost 1 hour.

 I forgot to take a picture of the doubled dough before I punched it down.

So pretend you have a bowl of bulging dough that you collapse and punch down, and then form into 8 dough balls. Sprinkle two cookie sheets with cornmeal, and place 4  dough balls on each cookie sheet. Slit top of each ball with a sharp knife. Place cookie sheets back into warm place to rise again until doubled, about 30-45 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

 Bake 18 minutes, until lightly browned. Set on cooling racks to cool.

New England Clam Chowder

Ingredients

2 T EVOO

4 carrots

3 celery stalks

1 leek

4 red potatoes

3 cloves garlic

1 can clam broth (or 'juice')

2 cans chopped clams (with juice)

1/2 c butter

1/2 c flour

1 quart half-and-half

2 t salt

1/2 t red pepper flakes

fresh-cracked black pepper

Instructions

Chop all the veggies.

Saute the carrots in the olive oil until slightly softened. Add in the rest of the veggies, the clams and the clam broth. Simmer until potatoes have softened.

In separate saucepan, melt butter, then whisk in flour to make a roux.

Slowly whisk in the half-and-half until mixed thoroughly.

Add this mixture to the veggies, heat on low without simmering or bubbling, as you want to keep the half-and-half from curdling. Add spices.

Pin It