New England Clam Chowder

Ingredients

• 4 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 (10 oz) cans chopped clams, juice reserved
• 1 (8 oz) bottle clam juice
• 1 1/2 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 2 sprigs thyme and 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• salt and black pepper
• chopped parsley and oyster crackers, to serve

Steps

1. Cook the bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Lift it out and leave the fat in the pot.
2. Add the butter, onion and celery and cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Stir in the garlic for 1 minute.
3. Sprinkle in the flour and stir 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the reserved clam juice and the bottled clam juice.
4. Add the potatoes, thyme and bay leaf. Simmer, partly covered, until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 18 minutes.
5. Stir in the milk, cream and clams and heat gently until steaming. Do not let it boil hard or the clams turn rubbery.
6. Remove the herbs, season with salt and pepper, and serve topped with bacon, parsley and crackers.

TipChowder thickens as it sits. Thin leftovers with a splash of milk when you reheat them.