I would pick one of the warmest days this week to make us soup for our dinner wouldn't I? Never mind, it was enjoyed no matter the temperature and I just know you will enjoy this Cheddar Chowder Recipe also, if not now, then in the coming months, so you might want to pin or bookmark it for later on.
Its a recipe that I found in that old tin recipe box that I was looking through at the weekend. I have no idea where it came from, or who it came from. Its written in my own hand, in ink which is starting to fade now and I confess . . . this is the first time I have made this.
It won't be the last, I guarantee. Isn't it funny how you save things for years and years and years, and never get around to using or making them.
Losing my mom this past year taught me one thing and that was that life is too short not to use the things you have. There is no point in saving things for a rainy day or for better times . . . use them now and get all the joy that you can get from them for as long as you can!
And that includes old recipe cards, filled with recipes that once upon a time you thought were good enough, and tasty enough to want to record them down by hand and tuck into your recipe box with the idea in mind to make them.
This is a fabulous soup . . . rich and creamy. Cheddar Chowder . . . meant to be hearty. You will want to make sure you have a really good cheddar cheese to use in this. A farmhouse cheddar, an old strong or sharp cheddar, I guess it is called in North America . . . well aged.
I used a cheddar that I picked up in Costco . . . aged enough that it is crumbly and there are little crunchy bits of calcification in it . . . a cheese you want to flake off and eat with a nice piece of apple pie if you had some, or enjoy with a nice glass of wine if you were a wine drinking person.
We have no apple pies . . . nor are we wine drinkers, but I do confess I enjoyed a few flakes while I was preparing this tasty recipe.
Served hot, ladled into bowls and topped with homemade croutons, it went down a real treat. There's enough leftover for Todd to enjoy some more tomorrow. He's really looking forward to that!
Yield: 4
Author: Marie Rayner
Cheddar Chowder
This is a fabulously tasty chowder. I adore chowders, which are milk based soups. This one boasts the rich and creamy taste of a good farmhouse cheddar. Make sure you pick a good one. Your choice will make all the difference in the world.ingredients:
- 2 TBS butter
- 1 large onion, peeled, cut in half and then sliced into thin half moons
- 2 TBS flour
- 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
- 240ml chicken stock
- 2 pints whole milk (4 cups)
- 1/4 tsp celery seed
- 1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
- 1/2 tsp hot paprika
- 180g of a well flavoured old cheddar cheese, grated (1 1/2 cups)
- salt and black pepper to taste
- buttered croutons to serve
instructions:
How to cook Cheddar Chowder
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the onion. Cook, stirring occasionally over low heat until softened without browning. Stir in the flour. Cook for a minute or so to cook the taste of the flour out. Stir in the stock, milk, potatoes and celery seed. Heat just to the boil. Don't allow it to boil. Reduce to a slow simmer, cover and simmer over very low heat for 25 minutes, or until the potatoes are knife tender. Stir in the mustard powder and paprika. Cook, uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the cheese and season to taste with salt and white pepper. Ladle into heated soup bowls, sprinkle with croutons and serve immediately.
I make my own croutons for soups. They are so easy to make. I just preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Butter some slices of stale white bread (or any bread really) and cut the bread into shapes with a cookie cutter (s). Today I sprinkled them with Everything But Bagel seasoning I bought on Amazon. It was Trader Joes. I paid a bomb, but I wanted to try the best so that then I can make my own. Watch this space!
Up Tomorrow: Crispy Sheet Pan Chicken Milanese
