another day ...

Sunday, January 11, 2009


chowder

haddock & scallop chowder

2 medium carrots grated
2 large stalks of celery finely chopped
1 large onion finely chopped
1 tbsp. oil
1 tbsp. butter
1-2 tsps. Old Bay Seasoning (if you have it)
4 medium potatoes chopped into small cubes (I used Yukon Gold)
14 large sea scallops* - cut into pieces
1 lb of haddock fillets (or any white fish or salmon)
1 cup of water
1 cup of clam or seafood** broth (I used chicken stock)
1 can evaporated milk (or whole milk or cream)
2-3 tbsp. freshly chopped parsley
salt & pepper to taste
(additional milk as needed to thin chowder)

Put oil and butter in the bottom of a dutch oven or large pot, add carrots, celery, onions and Old Bay Seasoning - saute gently until the vegetables soften and the onion becomes clear. Add potatoes, broth & water. Cover, turn the heat to low and let this simmer until the potatoes are cooked (about 5 mins). Add scallops and haddock (raw cleaned shrimp, lobster, a can of clams if you like) put lid back on and let this simmer for another 5 mins or until fish and scallops are white and opaque looking - no longer translucent. Add milk or cream. Cover again and on low heat bring the chowder back up to a simmer. Add fresh parsley. Serve.

* 14 became 10 as 4 large scallops (at least) had to be chopped lovingly into smaller pieces for the Nessie-ness who is a connoisseur of fine seafood.
** Clam or seafood broth is available in some grocery stores but not in this village

Well ... yesterday I didn't accomplish as much as I had hoped to ... another favourite song from the Greatest Hits album of my life. Perhaps I'm over zealous in my list making (uh-huh do ya think?), things just take longer than I anticipate and I also do get side tracked easily. Changing the bedding with the help of kittens for example ... or making chowder with Nessie as my sous chef. Miss D and I did have a lovely long second walk in blue sky, sunshine and sparkling snow at the golf course. I finished the first of what I hope to be an entire series of children's art prints (see tomorrow for new etsy listings). I did read 5 pages (of 529) from my new novel Middlesex before falling asleep with a thud ...

Another day of perfect minutes and moments.

3pm - just finished my late, aprés golf course, lunch of a big bowl of chowder and I gotta say It is delicious !! (if I do say so myself) chowder's one of those things that's always better the next day, and even better the day after that. Next time I make it (which might be Tuesday) I won't worry about the scallops at all and just use fish, maybe I'll add some frozen corn. Yum. Off to the the nest with my tea and Middlesex - our latest snow storm has just begun.

8 comments:

  1. That dish looks delicious Susan. I can only imagine the wonderful seafood that would be available where you live. I look forward to your series of children's art prints, and wish you and the furry ones an enjoyable week ahead.

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  2. Good morning, sweet Susan! It's OK if we don't always get to our list...yes? :) I hope you have a VERY beautiful day today. I will be checking out your Etsy shop tomorrow for your new items.

    Much love to you and the furry babies! xo

    PS Come check out my blog today...I think...actually, I KNOW it will make you smile. :)

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  3. Morning Susan......it's a great day for chowder.Even in the deep South it has turned cold and gloomy. Have a wonderful day!

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  4. You know, I lived in NS for almost ten years and never made seafood chowder? It seems ironic that now that I'm totally landlocked, I'm seriously considering that dish for tonight's supper!

    I've recently noticed that weekends without big to-do lists seem to fly by in a flurry of nothing-done-ness, leaving me pretty disappointed on Monday morning. If I make an ambitious list, even if I don't get it all done, I feel so much more satisfied with what I did accomplish over the weekend. That's partly the reason for the list notebook. (And you know I'll be saying "Ta-da, no lazy slugs here!" every time I look at it, now! Hee hee.)

    Looking forward to seeing the new prints!

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  5. When the snow stops, I'm going out and getting the ingredients for the chowder, sans the scallops...they are wicked expensive lately. I will make some bread or rolls as well. Nice snowy day activity ! Thanks !

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  6. When I clicked over and saw that photo, my mouth watered. When in Oregon...not last year because the wild Salmon fishing was closed down, but in years before, I always made a wild Salmon chowder. One of the great joys for you must be your easy access to the freshest sea food.

    I know what you mean about getting off track. My family frequently calls me "Sidetrack".

    Hey, let me know what you think of Middlesex. I have that book...have for a long time...but haven't read it.
    p.s. I left a comment to your coment

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  7. "Another day of perfect minutes and moments."

    gosh, Susan, i so love your words. you sometimes have these moments of pure literary genius. So very real and beautiful.

    anyway, I was showingyour blog to my wife who rperused it for an hour or so, goign over some of my favourite blogs of yours over the last year. it was so enjoyable. You really have done a marvelloous job of literary ponderance, journaling and photography. Love it, love it. Love all your walks with yor animal, the ennui, the sadness and hope cycles--everything. i would love to me you one day. You are so very much a coastal artist, and so wonderfully Canadian too.

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  8. Sorry for the above typos. i type too fast for my own good when enthused!

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