Market Street Grill Clam Chowder

I am loving fall in the desert so far. Almost every year my husband asks for this clam chowder for his birthday because it's during "jacket weather", as he calls it. Well now where we live it's still "shorts weather" but the clam chowder still prevailed. 

It's nice we still get a taste of one of our favorite restaurants up north, without leaving our perfect weather. My mom got this recipe from the newspaper forever ago. I'll assume Market Street actually posted it themselves since it tastes the same (I actually prefer my family's at home version than at the restaurant). 

I made this bread to go with it and I would recommend it over and over. 

Market Street Clam Chowder 

Serves a lot, haha I use my biggest pot so probably 8 to 10. It's easily halved

Ingredients 

4-6 cups diced potatoes 

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup chopped green pepper

1 cup chopped celery 

1 cup chopped leeks (about 2 small)

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup flour

2 quarts whole milk or half and half

2 cups water

2/3 cup white wine (cheapest you can get, will keep in the fridge for a long time for other cooking, not interested in preserving the alcohol just want the flavor) 

3/4 cups chopped clams and juice, about 2 cans (I chop them even smaller)

6 bay leaves

1 1/2 tablespoons salt

3/4 tablespoon pepper

A few splashes of Tabasco 

Directions 

In a large pot over medium heat melt the butter

Add flour and whisk, cooking the roux well stirring occasionally for maybe 10 minutes.

Pour in milk and whisk well.

Add water and wine.

Add vegetables, clams and juice, bay leaves, salt, pepper, and Tabasco. 

Stir occasionally keeping the bottom from sticking to the pan. 

Cook until the potatoes are soft, about 30 minutes. 

Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with bread and add another splash of Tabasco to your bowl if you'd like :)

Homemade Pretzel Balls

Homemade Pretzel Balls

3 cups warm water
2 1/4 teaspoons (one package) active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups bread flour
6 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups water
3 tablespoons baking soda
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon coarse grain sea salt

Dissolve the sugar in the warm water. Sprinkle the yeast over the top of the water and allow that to sit and foam up for 5-6 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the salt, bread flour, and all-purpose flour. Pour the yeast water into the bowl. Stir until combined. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 5-6 minutes. This flour is probably more water-based than you might be used to (if you bake bread often), so feel free to really flour your hands or the surface as you work. Place in an oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise for 1 hour (or until doubled in size).

Fill a large pot with 3 cups water and 3 tablespoons baking soda. Stir to dissolve. Heat the water to a low boil. While the water heats up, on a floured surface, divide the dough into small balls, or roll into long ropes and shape like pretzels. 

Place each pretzel in the boiling water for 30 seconds, flipping halfway through cooking. Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the water, draining away as much water as you can. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Allow to rest for 15 minutes.

Brush the tops of the pretzels with melted butter and sprinkle on the sea salt. Bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes. The pretzels should look golden brown but still feel slightly spring-y to the touch. Dip them in anything, we chose melted garlic butter. So good.

Grilled Potatoes with Lemon, Garlic, and Herbs

I've grilled potatoes before but it was in my grilling basket. Putting them on a skewer is ingenious and of course came from Cooks Illustrated.  This recipe is adapted from their Grilled Potatoes with Oregano and Lemon.  I don't usually make too much of a fuss over our side dishes. It's usually some form of cooked vegetable, with butter or olive oil and salt and pepper, that graces our table.  This is pretty much just dressing up my go to with a little garlic and herbs and it makes for a huge win; and a good change.

Grilled Potatoes with Lemon, Garlic, and Herbs

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 medium potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
Zest of one lemon, divided
Salt and pepper

Directions

In a small skillet, heat oil, garlic, herbs and a pinch of salt over medium heat.
Stir and cook until garlic is just barley light golden brown. Remove from heat.
Chop the potatoes to equal sizes.  I cut each potato into 8 equal pieces.
Microwave 2 minutes, stir, and then again, 2 minutes more.  The par-cooked potatoes skewer much easier. If they are still too hard, microwave 2 more minutes.
Heat grill on high to 400 degrees.
Skewer potatoes and lay them on a plate or cookie sheet.
Brush potatoes with some of the infused oil.*I try to avoid putting the larger pieces of garlic onto the potatoes.*
Turn burners to medium heat.
Lay potatoes onto grill and cook about 3-4 minutes and flip when grill marks show up.
Cook until tender.  If they are not done after about 8 minutes you may want to turn your burners down to low to avoid over charring.
Remove from the grill and coat once more with the infused oil.  Add a pinch more of lemon zest.
Salt and pepper to taste.

Hummus

Hummus is super easy and very customizable. Seems like every time I make it it turns out a little different than the last but still is good. I finally wrote down what I did and it still seems to taste different each time. I could be imagining it, who knows. I don't use tahini because of the price and, quite frankly, I like it just the same as the store bought kind with tahini. 

Hummus

Ingredients

1 15 oz can garbanzo beans

1 small clove garlic

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Pinch of salt and pepper

1/8th cup water

About 1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons olive oil 

Directions 

Place beans, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and water in a food processor. 

Turn it on and let it go for a couple minutes, scraping down the sides as needed. 

Drizzle in olive oil slowly until it reaches a good texture. I like it a little runnier than peanut butter. 

Taste it many times to make sure it's smooth. If it's not just process it bit longer. 

Asian Beef Lettuce Wraps

I'm always trying to find different ways to use ground beef. I love chili, tacos, hamburgers, and meatloaf but I need more variety. I've been hesitant in the past to use ground beef in asain dishes because, I don't know, it just seems weird to me. Turns out these lettuce wraps are not weird at all, and delicious! Seriously, such an easy meal. Minimal effort, great flavor. 

*Side note - I really am sorry my photography skills are not very good! With two kids at my feet all day I lose my patience with trying to get the perfect picture :) 

Asian Beef Lettuce Wraps

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

2 lg carrots, peeled and grated

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 head romain or other crisp lettuce

1 lb lean ground beef

Salt and pepper

1 clove garlic, smashed and minced

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 cup thinly sliced cabbage

2 green onions, chopped

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 teaspoon ground ginger

Dash or 2 of Tabasco sauce (I like a lot)

Juice of one lime 

2 cups cooked jasmine rice (optional)

Directions

In a small bowl stir together the carrots and vinegar and set aside. 

In another small bowl, stir together brown sugar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, ginger, Tabasco, and lime juice. Set aside. 

Heat a large pan over medium high heat. 

Salt and pepper the beef and add to the pan. When it's about half way done stir in the garlic and red pepper. Allow them to cook for a minute or two just to finish off cooking the beef.

Just as all the pink in the meat disappears, stir in the soy sauce mixture. 

Stir in the cabbage and cook just until it starts to wilt and soften, not very long.

Remove from heat and stir in the green onions. 

Serve while it's hot. 

Allow everyone to fill their own lettuce cups, beginning with beef, and topping it off with a small spoonful of carrots. I like mine with jasmine rice in it as well, or it can just be a side. 

Yum, enjoy!

Roasted Tomato Crostini with Basil Cream Cheese

This is what you call "let's see what we have in the fridge".  A baguette that was meant for another meal, left over tomatoes, feta, and some cream cheese. My 3 year old kept asking for more. He's not really a picky eater so that may not mean much. :) But in all seriousness, it's so easy and good as a simple appetizer or light dinner. It's easy to make the cheese ahead of time so, really, all you have to do is pull the tomatoes out of the oven and top the crostini. Easy. I'd say be liberal with the cheese to help act as a barrier to the tomatoes so it doesn't get the bread soggy... and because it's good. If you aren't serving a crowd, just halve the recipe and just use one baguette, or don't, I guess. 

Roasted Tomato Crostini with Basil Cream Cheese

Makes about 40 crostini (from 2 baguettes)

Ingredients

2 baguettes

3 12 oz containers cherry tomatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil

8 oz cream cheese

4 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese

4 tablespoons chopped basil

Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

In a 9x13 glass baking dish, coat tomatoes with the olive oil. 

Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stir and shake the pan to level the tomatoes out.

Roast for about an hour and a half, checking and stirring every half hour.

While the tomatoes are roasting, in a medium bowl combine cream cheese, feta, and basil with a hand mixer until it is smooth, creamy, and thoroughly combined. 

Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Slice bread into 1/2 inch thickness on an angle. 

Generously spread cheese onto slices and spoon about 3 tomatoes on each slice.