Manhattan Clam Chowder

Plump, briny cherrystone clams from the cold waters of the Northern Atlantic, in a spicy, clear broth of clam juice, crushed tomatoes, sauteed celery, onions and garlic, red pepper flakes, bacon, parsley, sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper.  A true classic..

Manhattan Clam Chowder

Manhattan Clam Chowder (adapted from a recipe by Martha Stewart)

3 cups filtered water
2 dozen cherrystone clams, scrubbed (about 2 cups clam meat)
5 slices non-smoked, thick-cut bacon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 celery stalks, thinly sliced
2 large garlic cloves, minced (1 tablespoon)
1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 jar (28 ounces) whole organic plum tomatoes, strained, juices reserved, tomatoes finely chopped
1 Kennebec or Yukon Gold potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh celery leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Bring water to a boil in a large pot.  Add clams, cover, and cook until shells open, about 10 minutes.  Transfer clams to a large bowl, reserving cooking liquid. Discard any clams that do not open.  Remove meat from shells, and return to bowl.  Discard shells.  Pour reserved liquid through a fine sieve lined with cheesecloth into a large bowl (you should have 2 1/2 cups).  Sprinkle a few tablespoons liquid over clams to keep them moist.

Heat a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat.  Add bacon, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 7 minutes.  Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels.  Pour off excess drippings, leaving just enough to coat bottom of pot.  Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, and reduce heat to medium.  Add onion, celery, garlic, and red-pepper flakes, and cook, scraping bottom of pot, until vegetables are light gold, about 7 minutes.

Raise heat to high, and stir in tomatoes, 1 cup reserved tomato juice, 2 1/2 cups reserved clam broth, and the potato.  Reduce heat, and simmer until potato is tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

Cut large clams in half.  Stir clams, bacon, parsley, and oregano into broth, and heat until warmed through, about 30 seconds.  Season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

Manhattan clam chowder has clear broth, plus tomato for red color and flavor.  In the 1890s, this chowder was called “New York clam chowder” and “Fulton Fish Market clam chowder.”  Clam chowder, in its cream-based New England version, has been around since the mid-18th century.  Many restaurants in northern Rhode Island sell both red and white chowders, while the southern coast favors clear and white chowders.

The addition of tomatoes in place of milk was initially the work of Portuguese immigrants in Rhode Island, as tomato-based stews were already a traditional part of Portuguese cuisine.  Scornful New Englanders called this modified version “Manhattan-style” clam chowder. –Wikipedia

Ventresca with Green Garlic-Tomato Concassé and Lemon-Caper Mayonnaise

In celebration of the fact that the temperature was in the 60’s today and we’re still getting fresh tomatoes here(!), I decided to toss up a summery plate of Ventresca (sustainably line-caught yellowfin tuna bellies) with green garlic-tomato concassé, lemon-caper mayonnaise, balsamic glaze and a relish of roasted peppers, black olives and fresh herbs..

Ventresca with Green Garlic-Tomato Concassé and Lemon-Caper Mayonnaise

For the Concassé

1-2 bulbs green garlic, including tops, thinly sliced
1 large plum tomato, peeled, seeded and diced
1/4 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil, preferably from the Ventresca tin
1 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Very slowly soften green garlic in olive oil over low heat, then add tomatoes, parsley, salt and pepper and continue to warm until softened.  All to cool in mesh strainer, reserving the oil for the mayonnaise.

For the Mayonnaise

6-8 oz reserved olive oil
1 small pastured egg yolk
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1/2 teaspoon baby capers, mashed
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
saffron threads, soaked

Soak the saffron threads in 1 teaspoon of cold, filtered water for 15 minutes, then whisk together with the lemon juice, egg yolk and salt.  Add the oil in a very thin stream, whisking continuously to form an emulsion.  Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

For the Relish

2 tablespoon roasted and pickled bell peppers, peeled, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon ripe black olives, pitted and slivered
1 teaspoon fresh chiffonade-cut basil

Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the Balsamic Glaze

1/2 cup aceto balsamico tradizionale

Using a double boiler to prevent scorching, reduce unadulterated balsamic vinegar until reduced in volume by about half.  The resulting syrup will thicken as it stands.

To assemble, spoon tomato concassé onto a serving plate, then top with a layer of Vetresca and dress with mayonnaise.  Add a second layer of concassé, tuna and mayonnaise and top with roasted pepper relish.  Dab the plate with balsamic glaze and finish the dish with coarse sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper.

Cauliflower Gobi, Scallion and Black Lemon Pancakes

Cauliflower florets in a tomato curry with onions, ginger and whole spices, served with savory garbanzo flour pancakes with scallions and black lemon..

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Cauliflower Gobi, Scallion and Black Lemon Pancakes

For the Pancakes

8 oz garbanzo flour
1 cup filtered water
3 tablespoons ghee or melted butter
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon black lemon
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
2-3 scallions, thinly sliced

Mix all ingredients together in a glass bowl and allow to stand 15 minutes.  Heat ghee or butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat.  Ladle in batter to form 3″ pancakes.  Cook until golden brown on both sides, then drain on paper towels.

For the Gobi

1/2 white onion, diced
6 plum tomatoes, peeled and crushed through your fingers
6 large cauliflower florets
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger
1-2 small green chiles, minced
1 teaspoon hulled cardamom seeds
1 teaspoon nigella seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon curry leaves, chopped
1 teaspoon true cinnamon nibs
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons poivron rouge
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon amchur (mango) powder
ghee or clarified butter

Sauté the onions, garlic, ginger, chiles and whole spices in ghee until fragrant, about 5 minutes.  Add turmeric, paprika, pepper and amchur and stir until thickened.

Add tomatoes, cauliflower and curry leaves and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper if necessary.

Spoon gobi over pancakes and serve immediately.

This post is part of Meatless Monday, an initiative of The Monday Campaigns,
in association with the Johns Hopkins’ Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Rustic Roast Chicken with Sweet Peppers and Sausage

Pastured chicken, sweet peppers, sausage, fresh herbs and garlicky croûtons. One of my personal favorites..

Rustic Roast Chicken

Rustic Roast Chicken with Sweet Peppers and Sausage

For the Bone Broth (adapted from a recipe by Thomas Keller)

5 pounds chicken parts such as necks, bones, backs, wings and feet
1 gallon cold, filtered water
1 3/4 cups carrots cut into 1-inch cubes
2 heaping cups leeks cut into 1-inch pieces (white and light green parts only)
1 1/2 cups Spanish onions cut into 1-inch pieces
1 bay leaf

Keller writes “As with all stocks, the goal is to remove impurities while extracting as much flavor and gelatin as possible from the bones, and the maximum flavor from the vegetables and aromatics.  You do this not only through gentle heat, but through gradual heat transitions as well; in other words, you don’t start with hot water, you begin with cold and bring it slowly up to heat”.

Rinse the chicken parts thoroughly under cold water to remove any remaining blood.  This helps to ensure that the resulting stock is clear, not cloudy.

Put all the bones into a large stock pot and add a gallon of cold water, just enough to cover the bones.  Slowly bring the liquid to a simmer and begin to skim as soon as the impurities rise to the top. Continue to simmer and skim until as much of the impurities have been removed as possible.

Add the vegetables and bay leaf and continue to simmer and skim for 45 minutes.  This recipes produces a lightly-flavored, gelatinous stock suitable for soups and braising.  For a stronger stock, simply continue to simmer and skim until the liquid has been reduced by 1/3 in volume.

Turn off the heat and let the stock rest 10 minutes to allow any particles left in the stock to settle to the bottom.

Ladle the finished stock through a strainer lined with a tea towel into a suitably large container, then transfer into quart jars set in a pan of ice water.  Allow to cool to room temperature before transferring to the refrigerator to keep for up to 3 days.

For the Vegetables

Split a number of sweet peppers, Spanish onion and plum tomatoes in half lengthwise and place cut side down in a skillet or on a parchment paper-lined tray.  Roast in a 375 degree oven until blistered but not blackened, about 30 minutes.  Set aside and allow to cool enough to handle, then pull the skins off the peppers and tomatoes.

Coarsely chop the vegetables with fresh basil and oregano and set aside.

For the Chicken

Split large breasts and thighs into 2-3 pieces each and season lightly with sea salt and freshly-ground pepper.  Melt a couple of tablespoonfuls of chicken fat in a heavy skillet.  Add the chicken as soon as the fat is shimmering but not smoking, and brown well on all sides.  Transfer chicken to a plate.

Cut 1-2 pieces of Italian sausage on a deep bias so that there is a lot of exposed surface area.  Brown the sausage in the same pan that you used for the chicken.

Arrange chicken and sausage in a Dutch oven containing 1 cup of bone broth as shown below.  Scatter roasted vegetables over the top, and drizzle lightly with olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper and place uncovered in a 375 oven until the chicken has finished cooking, about 15 minutes.

For the Croûtons

Steep a clove of garlic in pastured butter for a few minutes, then toss in roughly-torn pieces of bread and fry until golden brown.  Add chopped parsley and give the croûtons one more toss before setting aside.

To assemble, arrange alternating pieces of chicken and sausage on a plate and top with vegetables.  Tuck in some croûtons here and there, then drizzle all with some of the roasting juices.  Garnish with additional chopped herbs and serve immediately.

This post is part of The Nourishing Gourmet’s Pennywise Platter Thursday