Newest New England Ham & Clam Chowder For The Family

Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 8 slices bacon (at least, more is good too)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 -2 tablespoon butter
• 8 large potatoes, peeled, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, deseeded & chopped (or red, orange, yellow)
• 1/4 lb ham, diced (optional)
• 1 (46 ounce) can clam juice, divided
• 2 cups whipping cream, divided (half-n-half or milk)
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• salt & pepper, to taste
• 1 pinch parsley
• 2 (6 ounce) cans clams, reserve juice (chopped or minced)

Recipe

• 1 in a soup pot, brown the bacon; set aside when crisp.
• 2 add chopped onion (add the butter if you don't have a lot of bacon grease--otherwise save the butter for *later*--as noted below); saute onion for 2-3 minutes, then add potatoes, saute a few more minutes.
• 3 add green pepper to the pot, saute for about 1 minute.
• 4 mix veggies, then add ham and about 1/3 of the clam juice (don't bother measuring, just make sure the potatoes are covered).
• 5 simmer until the potatoes are just starting to get soft (20 minutes?).
• 6 add another shot of clam juice and 1 1/2°c of cream (or milk); return to a low simmer.
• 7 add remainder of clam juice from the big can and reserved from smaller cans; bring to a simmer again, stirring the pot occasionally to prevent sticking.
• 8 ****if you'd like to have a more "rich" chowder, add the butter now.****.
• 9 mix remaining cream/milk with cornstarch, add gradually to simmering pot until slightly thickened (not goopy, please).
• 10 add salt and pepper to taste along with pinch (or two) of parsley.
• 11 remove from heat and add the clams; stir. allow to rest for two - three minutes.
• 12 crumble crisp bacon over top of soup; stir.
• 13 serve immediately along with some hearty home-made croutons (1/2 loaf of french bread, cubed & toasted) and grated cheddar cheese.
• 14 variations: skip the ham and add 1-2 cups sweet corn kernels.
• 15 ***note*** when the store has a special on peppers, i buy a bunch, clean them up and chop into preparation-size bits, then quick-freeze them on cookie sheets (one-layer deep), then pour them into one-gallon zipper bags to store in the freezer. i keep a smaller container in my kitchen freezer for ready-access (and doesn't take up so much space).