Creamy New England Clam Chowder

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

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 slices bacon, cut into small pieces (using scissors makes this easy)
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped (or tsp celery seeds)
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 potato, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon mace
• 4 (6 1/2 ounce) cans chopped clams, juice reserved
• 2 cups heavy cream

Recipe

• 1 in a large dutch oven, cook bacon until crisp and fat is rendered. pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat. add the butter, onions, celery, garlic, and bay leaf and cook about 5 minutes until vegetables are tender.
• 2 add the potatoes and the reserved clam broth and bring to a boil. lower the heat, cover, and simmer about 30 minutes, until broth has thickened slightly and the potatoes are tender.
• 3 remove bay leaf from pot. using an immersion mixer (or blender), blend soup to a fine consistency. stir in the clams and heavy whipping cream. taste for saltiness, then season with pepper, salt, and mace (to your liking).
• 4 can be eaten right away, but it's best the next day. just let cool and refrigerate overnight. the next day simmer the soup to re-heat, but do not boil.