"Guest" Post-New England Clam Chowder

This recipe is my dad's best guess of how makes Clam Chowder. He isn't a recipe guy, which is where I get it from. This is far superior than any of the canned varieties. He made it for us when he and my mom came to visit at Thanksgiving. 

Ingredients
1 cup of Celery-chopped small
1 Shallot (a small onion and a clove of garlic work in a pinch)
1/4 cup of Carrot-chopped small
4 strips of Bacon-diced (I use scissors)
4 Russet Potatoes
3 cans of Clams
   1 Drained
   1 Half Drained
   1 Not Drained
1/2 stick of Butter (We use unsalted)
3 tablespoons of Flour
32 ounces of Half and Half
1 cup of Milk
1/2 teaspoon of Black Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
1-2 Bay Leaves
Salt to taste

How To:
1. Chop or Cut the Bacon (I use kitchen scissors)
2. Brown the Bacon in a Dutch Oven or Large Pot
3. Chop the Carrots, Celery, and Shallot and peel the Potatoes while the Bacon is browning
4. Once the Bacon is browned add the butter and melt (Do NOT drain the Bacon)
5. Add the Carrots, Celery, and Shallot to the Butter and Bacon
6. Soften the Veggies
7. Add the Clams, Half and Half, and Milk stir together
8. Add the Pepper, Italian Seasoning, and Bay Leaf
9. Simmer on Medium to Medium Low Heat
10. While the soup is simmering chop the Potatoes (Do NOT rinse the Potatoes, the starch is helpful in thickening the soup)
11. Add the Potatoes
12. The Soup is ready when the Potatoes are cooked

The ingredients minus the flour. I hope you know what flour looks like. =)

 My dad chopping bacon. It just happens to be Plath's. 

The chopped celery. (For those who are as picky as I am about cross contamination these pictures are not in order.)

Chopping carrots. He grated them first and then chopped them.

Action shot.

The bacon browning...mmm bacon.

Butter! Getting our Paula Deen on.

Add the Carrots, Shallots, and Celery.

Add the Flour.

Add the Clams.

Add the Half and Half and the Milk and Seasonings, heat to a simmer.

 Chop the Potatoes. I looks like he did this after the clams went into the pot. 

Add the Potatoes. Soup is done when the Potatoes are cooked.

The finished product. Delicious!!

If clams aren't your thing, this soup is great without the clams. We just added more potatoes and topped with cheddar cheese.

While this isn't low sodium (I do not know the numbers), I can guarantee it is far lower than Campbell's Chunky New England Clam Chowder. One Cup of the canned variety is 890mg of Sodium. That is almost a days worth on a Low Sodium Diet.

~Stefani =)