Loaded Clam Chowder (garlic clams, cinnamon croutons)

Store-bought chowder made better: extra chopped clams stirred in, garlic-butter clams on top, and cinnamon sourdough croutons instead of oyster crackers.

My recipe, built on a tub of clam chowder and a pack of chopped clams. The croutons are cut from Bread of Heaven cinnamon sourdough. The slightly sweet crunch against the briny soup works the way honey cornbread does with chowder.

Ingredients (2 bowls)

Method

1. Croutons first. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a skillet over medium. Add the bread cubes in one layer and toast 4–6 minutes, turning every minute or so, until golden and crisp on most sides. Sprinkle with flaky salt and move them to a plate. They crisp more as they cool. Keep the heat at medium. The cinnamon-sugar swirl burns quickly on high heat. It's the same lesson as the potato spices.
2. Asparagus (optional). In the same skillet, sear the asparagus 4–5 minutes until blistered in spots. Salt it, add lemon, and set it aside.
3. Warm the chowder. Heat it in a pot over medium-low until steaming, 5–8 minutes, stirring now and then. Don't boil it.
4. Clams into the chowder. Stir in about two-thirds of the chopped clams with all their juice. Keep it at a gentle simmer for 2 minutes, just until the clams turn opaque and firm, then take it off the heat.
5. Garlic-butter clams. Wipe out the skillet, melt 1 tbsp butter over medium, and add the garlic and pepper flakes for 30 seconds. Add the remaining clams, drained, and cook 60–90 seconds, stirring, until just firm. Squeeze in some lemon and add the parsley.
6. Serve. Ladle the chowder into bowls, spoon the garlic clams into the center, and scatter the cinnamon croutons around them. Finish with black pepper. Add the croutons right before eating so they stay crunchy.

Nutrition per bowl

This is calculated from the same USDA data as Build a Day. The croutons use the Bread of Heaven label already in the Food Database.

% of the daily target for men (the same targets as Build a Day). ~ = mostly estimated. The chowder is USDA's canned New England chowder, with B12 and the fats filled in from the milk-prepared version. Your chowder's label is the better guide. 8 oz of raw chopped clams counts as about 6 oz cooked, split between two bowls.