Thick chowder is key – as are hot and crisp Fries. Frozen will not do. This might be my Summer go out for dish.
The spud on spud left my Irish heart happy.
Here’s what may be the first chowder recipe in print.
Boston Evening Post on September 23,1751.
First lay some Onions to keep the Pork from burning
Because in Chouder there can be not turning;
Then lay some Pork in slices very thing,
Thus you in Chouder always must begin.
Next lay some Fish cut crossways very nice
Then season well with Pepper, Salt, and Spice;
Parsley, Sweet-Marjoram, Savory, and Thyme,
Then Biscuit next which must be soak’d some Time.
Thus your Foundation laid, you will be able
To raise a Chouder, high as Tower of Babel;
For by repeating o’er the Same again,
You may make a Chouder for a thousand men.
Last a Bottle of Claret, with Water eno; to smother ’em,
You’ll have a Mess which some call Omnium gather ’em.
Still not the thick layer at the bottom I remember, the layer of soggy grape-nuts….
Savour has a version that promises the bottom layer….
December 19, 2007 Saveur
serves 6-8
Ingredients
1 cup Grape-Nuts cereal
1 qt. milk
4 eggs
1⁄2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1⁄4 tsp. fine salt
Grated nutmeg
Instructions
Heat oven to 350°. Grease a 2-quart glass loaf pan with 1 tsp. butter; set aside. Put cereal into a bowl; set aside.
Bring milk just to a boil over medium heat; pour over cereal and set aside to let soak for 5 minutes.
Beat together eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl. Slowly pour egg mixture into milk mixture while whisking constantly. Transfer to reserved pan; set in a deep roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into roasting pan that it reaches halfway up pudding pan. Bake until just set, about 1 1⁄4 hours. Let cool; sprinkle with grated nutmeg.
But now that Spring has finally come, and the weather is in the 70’s, the last thing I want to do is turn on the oven and fuss with a water bath – even calling it bain marie doesn’t make it more attractive.
Pea shoots, micro-green salads, pasta with seasonal pestos, eggs with greeny things….It’s still April; there’ll be a day for custard before May.
Another beer pizza, one that also has honey it. I’ve only recently started putting sugar 0r in this case, honey, in my pizza doughs. Not enough to alter the flavor so much, but to encourage better browning, which also makes it a little crisper.
Beer Pizza Dough with Honey
1 (¼-oz.) package active dry yeast
¾ cup warm beer with 1/4 cup water (the liquid should equal a cup – depending on your beer it could be 1/2 and 1/2 or even all beer)
1 tsp. honey
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil plus more for the bowl
1 tsp. salt
3 cups bread flour, plus more as needed
12 minutes at 500
Mix the yeast with the beer in a small bowl. Let get all good and frothy – 5-15 minutes.
Add the honey, the olive oil and the salt.
Put the flour in a large bowl. Add the liquid mixture. Mix it all together until it’s dough.
Turn onto a floured surface and knead until it’s tight and as as smooth as a baby’s bottom.
Wash out and oil the bowl, put the dough back in and turn so all sides are slick and less likely to get crusty (crusty – good in pizza, bad in dough).
Let rise 1-2 hours OR
Put in the fridge overnight and up to 2 days. Bring to room temp (1 -2 hours depending on your room) before continuing. Whatever works for your schedule.
Preheat the oven to 500° F.
Divide the dough into 4 parts for 4 12″ pizzas ( or more or fewer, depending on your final product. I’ve been making fewer, smaller pizzas and keeping the ‘leftover’ dough in the freezer for the next pizza meal.)
Roll the dough or stretch or pat it – you should be developing a technique all your own by now….
Top and bake Here’s the link to the Six Onion Pizza from Saveur that the dough came from.
