Clam Chowder (thing)

Like most other recipes, this one is flexible and can be jazzed up as you see fit. I'll get to my personal additions in a minute. I've tried to make this recipe easy to adapt to varying numbers of guests. Simply multiply the quantities of ingredients by the number of guests you have or servings you want to end up with. Keep in mind that soup kept overnight in the refrigerator will taste better the second day. Serves one.

Ingredients per person:

• One strip of bacon. Salt pork can substituted.
• A medium onion.
• Two medium potatoes.
• One half cup of fresh shelled clams or one half of a can of chopped clams. Round up.
• One cup of fish stock or water.
• One cup liquid dairy product: milk, cream, or half and half depending on your preference for richness.

Extras (again, per person):

• One tablespoon of flour. Include this if you like thick chowder.
• One half tablespoon of butter.
• One bay leaf. Crumble it in if it's dried.

Directions:

1. In a big pot, cook the bacon. When the bacon is crispy, remove it and keep it for later.
2. In the bacon fat, dice and sauté the onions. You could use other oils instead of bacon, if you're feeling health-conscious, but you'll lose a lot of taste.
3. Coarsely chop the potatoes and fry them lightly in the onion/bacon fat. They should be just slightly browned on the outside. This frying will help them stay intact during the rest of the cooking.
4. If you chose fresh clams steam them separately, keeping the juices.
5. To the big pot, add the liquid from the clams. Add the fish stock/water. If you steamed fresh clams, you will have plenty of juices and won't need extra water. Two cups of juice per person will be plenty. Your chowder will start to look recognizable here. If it's too thick, add more water until you are satisfied.
6. Mix in the flour, if you think the chowder is too thin. You could also simply boil it down.
7. Add the butter and the bayleaf/bayleaves.
8. Simmer covered for about half an hour. Test to see if the potatoes are done.
9. Add the clams (shell fresh clams first! Leave out clams that remain closed after steaming) and the dairy and simmer for another 5 minutes or so. You don't want them to get overcooked and tough.
10. Fish out the bayleaf if you added it whole.
11. You're done! Serve up the soup in bowls while still hot. Garnish with crumbled bacon and freshly ground black pepper. Maybe some crackers or a nice crusty load of bread.

Notes:
Now, if you're looking for good additions, you can consider Manhattan Clam Chowder which contains tomatoes in place of the dairy. Use about 1.5 cups of tomatoes per person. I have yet to see that type for sale in New England. I've never tried soy instead of dairy. Maybe next time I make it. I'd also recommend adding some chili peppers, but that's just because I like things spicy. You might as well put out for the good clams. You'll appreciate it later. Enjoy!

References:
This is loosely based on the recipe for clam chowder in The Joy of Cooking, a similar recipe I found on epicurious.com, and my own cooking experience.