Clam Chowder

4 slices bacon

½ cup chopped onion (optional - I made this for my dad, who can't eat onions, and it was great)

½ cup diced celery

½ cup diced or grated carrot

2 cups peeled, diced potatoes

4 (6.5 oz) cans minced clams

1 bottle clam juice

½ cup butter

½ cup flour

1 quart half-and-half

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 ½ teaspoons salt

ground black pepper, to taste

Pinch of thyme

1.     Brown the bacon in a large saucepan. Remove cooked bacon and set aside (add with clams later). In bacon fat, sauté onion, celery and carrot until soft. Add potatoes and clam juice (including the juice from the minced clams). Simmer until potatoes are tender.

2.     In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Whisk in half-and-half and stir constantly until well-blended and slightly thickened. Add flour mixture to vegetables and stir well.

3.     Just before serving, stir in clams and cooked bacon (chopped). Stir in vinegar and seasonings.

Shrimp & Pasta Toss

Photo by Heidi

This recipe serves 4, and uses half a 2-pound bag of frozen shrimp. I double the recipe and put half the sauce in a Ziploc bag to keep in the freezer, with the remaining shrimp (separately, if the shrimp have not been shelled yet). When I am ready to cook the second batch, I thaw the sauce in the fridge for a day or two. The sauce separates after being frozen, but blends well after being heated and still tastes delicious. 

1. 1/2 cup heavy cream 
2. 1/2 cup chicken broth or stock 
3. 2 cloves garlic, minced 
4. 1/4 to 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil
5. 2 green onions, diced 
6. 1 tablespoon apple juice 
7. 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 
8. 1 teaspoon dried basil 
9. Salt & pepper, to taste 
10. 1 pound frozen medium-sized (51/60) shrimp, shelled 
11. 8 ounces penne regata, cooked in salted water (I cook a full 16 ounce package of pasta, and serve the other half with marinara sauce, for family members who do not like shrimp) 
12. French bread, for serving 

Combine sauce ingredients (1 through 9) in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add shrimp and bring to a simmer. Cook 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until shrimp is done. Add cooked pasta to the shrimp mixture and serve with sliced French bread.

Grilled Pizza

photo by Emily Hale

This post is for my brother Chris who just moved to a new house with a Weber. The grill I have is the cheapest gas grill made, but it works dandy, and it was a perfect gift from my parents. We've used it a lot lately since our power has been out twice in the past month. I used it to boil water for mac n cheese the other day. Soon I hope to try grilled french toast, a tip from the Hale's.

So here's grilled pizza. At first you think you're failing because the dough won't be symmetrical no matter how delicately you try to put it down. And holes will tear through and inevitably start to burn around the edges. But all this adds to the rustic tastiness, trust me.

Dough makes four 10" pizzas for four 5' people
1 C warm water

1 tsp sugar
1 packet yeast
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 C flour


Soften the yeast and sugar in water. When foamy, whisk in oil and salt. Stir in flour until combined and turn out onto floured work surface. With oiled hands, knead until dough comes together in an elastic ball, two minutes. Add more flour as needed. Let rise until double in an oiled, covered bowl, about 30 min. Punch down and let double again, although I have skipped the second rise and it worked fine, maybe due to the humidity here...?

To make generous single serving pizzas, divide dough into fourths, or make smaller pizzas to help maintain your sanity. Stretch the dough and brush with herb oil (this is simple yet essential, recipe below) before placing on the grill.

Cook dough on one side until done to your liking, flip over and add tomato sauce (the simpler the better, recipe below) toppings (our favorites are prosciutto or pesto shrimp and black or kalamata olives) and cheese. The best cheese is a mixture of torn fresh mozzarella, shredded part skim mozzarella and diced fontina. Cover the grill to let the cheese melt and remove just before the bottom burns.

Herb oil is olive oil heated for two minutes with minced fresh rosemary and sliced garlic.


Simple Tomato Sauce

Saute one or two garlic gloves, diced or pressed, add a large can of peeled tomatoes, a basil leaf, oregano and salt. Let simmer while smashing the tomatoes and then cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Mustard-Maple Salmon

I asked Andy to list his favorite dishes that I make, and this topped it. I am flattered whenever he has eaten salmon at a restaurant and proclaims that mine is better!

Mustard-Maple Salmon

3 Tbsp country style Dijon mustard
3 Tbsp pure maple syrup
1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper
4 (6 oz.) salmon fillets (about 1 inch thick)

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large Ziploc bag; add salmon. Seal bag and marinate in refrigerator for 20 minutes. Preheat broiler with oven rack in center of oven. Remove salmon from bag, reserving marinade. Place salmon on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray, or on a baking sheet lined with nonstick foil. Broil for 6 minutes on each side (baste salmon with reserved marinade after turning once) or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Yummy Tilapia

So I've been into doing some freezer meals lately. I figured out the trick is to do everything up until the final cook and they end up tasting like I just made them.
I made this recipe times four and shared two with a friend. We've eaten one and got another in the freezer. My family (6 eaters) probably could have eaten 1 1/2 pounds of fish so next time I will increase it a little. Everyone raved!

1 pound Tilapia (I used the fresh Tilapia from Costco), cut into serving size
1/4 c butter
2/3 c seasoned bread crumbs (I crushed the focaccia croutons from Costco)
1/4 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 t basil
1/2 t oregano
1/2 t salt
1/2 t garlic powder
1 T lemon juice
1/2 c sliced mushrooms
1/4 c slivered almonds

Melt butter in casserole dish (one size down from a 9 X 13 worked well). In separate bowl, combine bread crumbs, cheese, basil, oregano, salt and garlic powder. Dip fish in melted butter, then in crumb mixture. Arrange fish in dish. Sprinkle with lemon juice, then top with mushrooms and almonds. To freeze cover with plastic wrap and tinfoil. Label tinfoil with reminder to remove plastic wrap before baking. When ready to cook, let thaw and bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Enjoy!