clam chowder

this weekend i've been feeling under the weather so there was a lot of napping and laziness that occured. of course my body would pick a long weekend to not get along with me! so after enough days of doing nothing i did a bunch of cooking today! for lunch i made clam chowder from of my book "for the love of soup," which i also used for my tomato soup!

i can't decide how i feel about this clam chowder. it is not your fatty creamy clam chowder, but rather a healthier version that uses milk and clam juice for flavor. to make the chowder, i chopped celery, onion, carrots, and potatoes. then i cooked up a little bacon on the pan and then added in the celery, onion, carrots and sauteed them for a bit. then in went the potatoes, bay leaf, chicken stock and clam juice.

after simmering for 15 minutes, i added in the clams and milk that had had been mixed with corn starch which helped thicken the soup.

the flavor was good, but i think next time would add just a little cream to get that consistency that i like in chowder. i also think that this soup is a little like pasta in that it will taste better tomorrow after the clams and the juice have had some time to meld with everything.