- 2 (10 oz.) cans baby clams -- drained, liquid reserved
- 2 cups clam juice -- from drained clams and/or bottled clam juice
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 leek -- cleaned and thinly sliced into rounds
- 2 celery ribs -- minced
- 1/2 green bell pepper -- minced
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 medium red potatoes -- washed and diced
- 1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- Salt and pepper to taste
Drain the clams and measure the reserved liquid. If necessary, add bottled clam juice to the liquid to total 2 cups. Place the clam juice in a small saucepan and heat just to boiling. Meanwhile, in a stock pot, heat the butter over medium-high heat, add the leek, celery and pepper and sauté, stirring, for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat and whisk in the flour. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Whisk in the boiling clam juice and chicken stock and heat to simmering. Add the potatoes and tomatoes into the soup pot. Stir in the thyme leaves. Simmer for 20 minutes.
In a food processor, blend 2/3 cup of the clams to a puree (if you need more liquid, spoon a little of the hot broth into the processor bowl with the clams). When you're ready to serve, reduce the soup to barely simmering and vigorously stir in the pureed clams. Add the rest of the whole baby clams and adjust the seasonings right before serving.
- Yields: 6 servings
- Preparation Time: 40 minutes