Creamy Clam Chowder

Everyone who likes seafood has probably tried clam chowder at some point or another. The trick to having the best clam chowder is to learn to make it your self. It really isn't all that difficult to do, particularly if you use this cream clam chowder recipe. Best of all, it will take only a little longer to make than using a canned brand, but it tastes about one thousand times better. You will love it.

Ingredients:

• 3 medium carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 quart half and half cream
• 3 cans (19.5 ounces total) minced clams
• 2 cans (about 22 ounces total) condensed cream of potato soup
• 3/4 cup butter, cubed
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch

Recipe:

1. Saute vegetables. Grab a large saucepan or even a pot, and put the butter, onions, celery, and carrots into it. Saute the vegetables in the butter until they are tender. Be careful that you don't have the heat too high or you can end up burning the butter or even the vegetables. While sauteing the vegetables, be sure that you are stirring them frequently to help prevent them from burning. Ideally the heat setting should be about medium high.
2. Stir in soup and clams. If you are using multiple cans of clams, drain one of them and leave the other two undrained. Slowly add the potato soup and the undrained clams, stirring as you do so. Once you have mixed everything together, go ahead and add the remaining clams to the mix. Again stir everything together so that it will cook evenly.
3. Combine cornstarch and cream. In a separate bowl combine the cornstarch and 1 cup of the cream. Mix the two ingredients together, possibly using an electric mixer, until everything is nice and smooth.
4. Add mixture and boil. Pour the cream and cornstarch mixture slowly into the soup, and stir it together. Bring everything to a boil, stirring the entire time. Once it is boiling, reduce the heat so that everything is at a gentle simmer, and continue the simmering and stirring for at least two minutes or until the soup has thickened up a bit.
5. Add remaining cream. Once you have thickened up the soup a bit, you need to pour in the remaining cream. Do this slowly, and stir everything to combine it all, until all of the remaining cream has been added to the soup.
6. Heat and serve. Continue to stir the soup, and heat it up until the soup has been heated all the way through. With the soup now heated, and mixed completely, you can begin to serve it. Add salt and pepper to your desired taste. Ladle some of the soup into a bowel and then enjoy!

Keep in mind that clam chowder is designed to be served warm, so you should serve this rather quickly once you remove it from the stove. This recipe, as presented here, has been designed to make about nine servings of creamy clam chowder. While you can always serve the chowder by itself, you can also serve it with some cheesy biscuits, or some oyster crackers.