Time to suit up in your best mental armor and get after it.
Anyone from New England knows there are two types of chowder: the good one (white) and the okay one (red). If you're from Rhode Island, like me, you might have the third option of clear, but that goes in the same category as red for me. Thin, soup-like, not very satisfying, red and clear chowders can be good—but for me, it'll always be the hearty, creamy wonder that is white chowder that takes the (clam) cake—especially since I grew up eating it with my parents out on the beaches of Narragansett.
But as we get started on a month of courage inspiring recipes for our magic, I also thought it was a good place to stop for the qualities of the clam itself. That, along with the egg from the clam cake, the thyme, the onion, and the celery in the soup—yeah. We've got something that'll make you feel great for the richness and nutrition of it, as well as the magical components of it. Let's talk about it.
Magic in White Clam Chowder
One might hear the phrase "clam up" or "coming out of the shell" and think that maybe clams aren't so good for courage, but there's something to be said about that clam shell to begin with. It's hard, protective, and durable, and it helps those critters survive some crazy stuff out there on the ocean floor, even though they can't so easily get away from predators. Sometimes we need to remember that armor is an option, and that we're not any less brave or strong for going out with it in. After all, going out armored is better than not going out at all.
This dish is loaded with the power of fire and water, which help you recognize and acknowledge that things are intimidating and scary while also giving you the drive and power to forge on ahead anyway. A soldier in battle isn't a soldier unafraid, after all; they're just ones who can steel themselves to the coming fight and charge ahead. Likewise, Mercury, Mars, and Venus help you communicate your needs, express yourself, and boost your ambition to take on the challenges in life that intimidate you the most.
White Clam Chowder
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 60 minutes
Makes 6-8 servings
Ingredients:
For chowder:
4 small cans of chopped clams (2 drained, 2 with juice)
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 potatoes, peeled and diced
3 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 tsp thyme
Salt & pepper to taste
For clam cakes:
3 cans of chopped clams (1 drained, 2 with juice)
1/2 cup milk
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Vegetable oil for frying
Directions:
Mix together wet and dry clam cake ingredients until you have a consistency slightly thicker than pancake batter. Set aside.
Fry onion until soft, then add garlic.
Add carrot and celery and cook until slightly softened.
Heat oil for frying clam cakes to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, or until a wooden chopstick bubbles in it.
Add clams, clam juice, potatoes, thyme, and milk, then bring to a simmer and let cook for 30 minutes, stirring often.
While the chowder cookes, drop a few small ladels of batter into the oil at a time.
When one side becomes golden brown, flip to the other side until it’s fully cooked.
Let them drain of excess oil on a wire rack.
Serve with chowder immediately.
Nothing says New England like a bowl of clam chowder and clam cakes by the ocean. Even if you live in a landlocked state, you'll be able to get the feeling of that stormy Atlantic breeze and the waves on the rocks, as well as the warmth from a good meal. Try it out!
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Sara Raztresen is a Slovene-American writer, screenwriter, and Christian witch. Her fantasy works draw heavily on the wisdom she gathers from her own personal and spiritual experience, and her spiritual practice borrows much of the whimsy and wonder that modern society has relegated to fairy-and-folktale. Her goal is to help people regain their spiritual footing and discover God through a new (yet old) lens of mysticism.
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