Thursday, January 24, 2013

Gold Beach Winter Chowder




From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...If you have 15 minutes and a few basic ingredients in your freezer, this lovely winter chowder will lure you to your kitchen the way the sirens lured the Argonauts to the Sirenuse. You'll need a pound of frozen shrimp, a pound of frozen corn and some potatoes to get started. Several times a year a local grocery chain sells 2 pound bags of extra large shrimp for around $12. I usually buy 6 bags at a time, so I always have shrimp in my freezer for a quick weeknight meal. When I saw this recipe in Family Circle magazine, I knew I had to give it a try and I pulled a pound of shrimp from my stash. I did make a few changes to the original version of the recipe. I substituted Yukon Gold potatoes for consistent color and frozen shoepeg corn for tenderness, I also swapped a cup of chicken broth with a quickly made shrimp stock. The stock was embarrassingly simple to make. I covered the shells from a pound of shrimp with three cups of water and boiled them until the liquid was reduced to one cup. I used that cup to replace a cup of stock in the Family Circle recipe. Forty-five minutes later, I had a chowder that was thick and creamy and thoroughly enjoyable. I have one caution. This should be served shortly after it is made. The corn and the shrimp toughen when they are reheated and the chowder, while still good, is just never quite the same. This is a wonderful family recipe and it is perfect for a winter night. It is quick and uncomplicated to make and if your family enjoys chowder, I think they'll love this one. Here's how it is made.

Gold Beach Winter Chowder...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Family Circle magazine

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 small leeks, cleaned and sliced
2 large Yukon gold potatoes (about 12 oz), peeled and cubed
1 cup shrimp stock
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
4 cups frozen corn kernels (shoepeg if possible), thawed
1-1/2 cups half-and-half
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
1 sweet yellow pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced
1 sweet orange pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced
1 pound medium shrimp, shelled, deveined and cut with scissors into thirds
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce

Directions:
1) Shell shrimp. Place shells in a medium pot. Cover with 3 cups water and boil until liquid is reduced to 1 cup. Drain shells reserving stock.
2) In a large pot melt butter over medium heat and add leeks; cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add potato, shrimp and chicken broth and corn kernels. Simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3) Combine half-and-half and cornstarch; stir into pot. Add Old Bay seasoning and bring to a simmer. Add peppers and shrimp; simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in lemon juice and hot sauce. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.







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20 comments :

Sue/the view from great island said...

Beautiful warm winter night's recipe, Mary! I love the idea of making an impromptu shrimp stock, and I bet it added so much authentic flavor to the chowder!

Buttercup said...

This looks delicious and perfect for our fifteen degree evening. I like corn chowder and shrimp and shrimp stock only make it better.

Ginny Hartzler said...

Phil would be in heaven, his favorite spice is Old Bay. He even asks for bowls of it when we eat out!

Unknown said...

 this soup with leeks, potatoes and shrimp must be delicious dear Mary the use of corn incurisiscew me here in Italy is the only pre-cooked canned corn blessing simmy

Top Cuisine avec Lavi said...

Delicious recipe! Greatings Mary!

Unknown said...

I usually don't like corn in my soups/chowders, but this one looks too good not to try! Perfect for those cold nights!!

Jasline (Foodie Baker) said...

What a delicious looking bowl of soup!

Kim said...

When it's cold (wich is a fact around here these days (minus 30C Yesterday!!!!) there is nothing better than a great bowl of soup. This one would be perfect!

Tanna said...

Sounds perfect for the next cold snap we have!! It's going to be in the 70s today, so I'm tagging this one to my "list". ;) Thank you. blessings ~ tanna
ps I've passed on the info for the Dreambird to my daughter. ;)

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

This does look delicious and perfect for these cold winter days.

Anonymous said...

ooo.this is lovely, shrimp stock, wow, thats a great addition

Susan..... said...

I was going to make a batch of pasta sauce for dinner but this sounded much more desirable. Perhaps I will make both and freeze the sauce for later. Thanks Mary, soup when it's 4° is the perfect antidote.

www.you-made-that.com said...

This sounds like a lovely soup and simple to make. I'm sure your shrimp stock was much better than chicken broth too. Have a nice weekend :)

Anonymous said...

Looks like a perfect chowder for this cold weather -
Mary x

Marcella said...

Uhhh.... i like this recipe! Usually in Italy if we have some shrimps or good ingredients we cook some pasta and that's the dinner! But i really like something hot and creamy!

The Single Nester said...

I may just have to make this for this 10 degree weather.

teresa said...

i just posted a soup recipe too, i love soup this time of year. this looks wonderful!

France@beyondthepeel said...

his sounds like a wonderfully hardy soup, perfect for a winter meal.

What's next said...

I'll be trying that one! I love all things shrimp.
Hope you're feeling better.

Alicia@ eco friendly homemaking said...

Oh this soup looks delicious. This would be a great soup to have on a chilly night.

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