Throwback Thursday you say? I say that's a good time for a recipe!  Especially if it's another excellent old-school recipe, this time for New England Clam Chowder.  (Pretty sure, by the way, I'm going to throw recipes into the back of the book, so it's a good gift for anybody who likes to cook, huh?)

In "Women Like Us", Susan's introduction to the culinary world comes when she lands a job in an old Clam shack on Martha's Vineyard, which is where she meets Henry's father Andrew, who's the son of Edith Vale. She's starts as a waitress but when the old cook drops dead, she's put in charge of the small kitchen, where one of the most important jobs is making the Clam Chowder.  This recipe, which I've always loved, is another one adapted from Julia Child's "The Way To Cook". Again, it's a Julia recipe that harkens back to her New England roots and is not in any way French.  Anyway, here ya go:

New England Clam Chowder

(Recipe adapted from Julia Child's "The Way To Cook")

1 1/2 pounds littleneck clams

1 1/2 cups water

1/4 cup good smoked bacon, cut into thin slices

1 tbsp. butter

1 1/2 cups onions, sliced

1 Bay leaf

1/2 cup crushed oyster crackers

2 cups liquid (clam steaming juices and some water)

2 small or 1 large russet potato, diced (about 2 cups)

salt and fresh ground pepper

1 cup whole milk

More Oyster crackers for serving

Chopped chives or parsley for serving

1)  Wash the clams well and place in a large kettle with a tight fitting lid.  Add the water and bring to a boil. Cover the kettle, and let clams steam a couple of minutes, just until most of them start to open. Remove open clams and steam the rest 2 minutes longer, then discard any unopened clams.  Remove the meats to a bowl.  Pour the liquid through a sieve lined with paper towel into a 2 cup liquid measure. Add water to make two cups if you need.  Set aside.

2)  In a large soup pot, melt butter and toss in sliced bacon. Cook bacon over medium heat until it just starts to crisp, and then toss in onions. Add bay leaf. Cover, lower heat and cook slowly about 10 minutes, until onions are soft and translucent.  Toss in crushed oyster crackers. Mix in well, then add in the 2 cups clam steaming liquid. Add potatoes. Liquid should just cover potatoes, so add a little water if you need. Bring to the boil and then simmer, loosely covered, for 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  Blend in milk, bring to simmer again and taste for seasoning.

3) Roughly chop the clams.  Fold them into the chowder and remove from heat. Sprinkle with chopped chives or parsley and serve with more oyster crackers on the side.

Serves 3-4

Here's the final product!

Hi!  Time for another cocktail, I think. Again, people, a recipe, so put that glass down. But first a little background via a short excerpt from the book.  Here Susan Jones, who has taken over as chef at an old haunt in Pasadena, is in the middle of a mid-shift rant when Edith Vale shows up with her friends, the girls, although all of them are in their 70's!  This restaurant, like I said, is a venerable old haunt -- here in LA think Musso & Frank, or Taylor's but every town has one -- and it's famous for cocktails. One of the ones it's most noted for is a Moscow Mule, best served icy cold in copper mugs but if you don't have copper mugs by all means use a glass.  So first the excerpt, then the cocktail. And then if you haven't pre-ordered, please do so!

Excerpt

She spun around. There stood Edith Vale, Oatsie O’Shea, Evelyn Brookby and Tish Van Buren, all of them impeccably turned out in sweater sets and pearls, pocketbooks clutched in their hands, all of them bright eyed and more than a little lubricated after copious samplings from the cocktail menu. The four had decided to have their ladies’ night out at Chadwick’s that week, and Susan, already red-faced from the heat and steam of the kitchen, went a darker shade of scarlet as she wilted before them. She smiled sheepishly and dusted a plate of sole with finely minced parsley. “Did you ladies eat?” was all she could manage. 

 “It was delightful, dear,” said Oatsie. 

 “I haven’t set foot in this place since 1989,” said Evelyn Brookby, “but I’ll be back.”

 “Girls, maybe we should go. She’s obviously busy,” said Tish. 

 “Well, we wanted to pay our compliments to the chef,” said Edie. “But we obviously caught you at a bad time.” 

 “Oh, don’t leave,” said Susan. “Let me send out some desserts.” 

 “Darling, we all shared a blueberry buckle, and it was divine,” Oatsie said, “although do consider putting Floating Island back on the menu.” 

Susan nodded. The ladies left the kitchen, and the dishwasher, Luis, practically invisible under the huge stockpot he was scrubbing, popped up and said, “I don’t know about anybody else, but that grey haired one? She had one hot ass. For an old lady I mean.” 

“I’d tap it,” said Stacy. 

Susan couldn’t help it. She forgot what set her off and started to laugh. And so one crisis was diffused, only to be replaced by another, when one of the wheezy old waiters tottered into the kitchen and said to Susan, “you’ve got a problem, honey-doll. You better get out to the bar.”

Moscow Mule (recipe adapted from the NY Times Book of Cocktails)

1 1/2 tbsps. fresh lime juice

2 tbsps. simple syrup

1/4 cup vodka

Ginger beer

Candied ginger or sliced lime for garnish, if you like

1. Fill a copper mug or glass with ice. Add lime juice, simple syrup and vodka. Top off with ginger beer. Stir vigorously. Garnish with Candied Ginger or lime slice.