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Oyster and corn chowder is wonderful in the fall when oysters are small and tasty and corn is plentiful from the summer harvest. The first time I made this chowder was for a couple of close friends, Melissa and JT, at a time when we were just becoming close friends. It was probably the only time that just the three of us were in a room. I was single at the time, but both JT and Melissa had significant others who were out of town. I was starting to really bond with JT, a college friend who I had spent little time with previously. Our new found connection was aided by his awesome wife who I had met for the first time a couple months before (in spite of us going to high school and college together). But his wife was out of town visiting family. I had spent a good deal of time with Melissa the week before. She was dating Tim, my roommate at the time, and I felt it was my duty to take care of her in his absence, whether she needed me taking care of her or not. This was about half-way through the wonderful year that I spent living in New York City and I decided that I would make a meal for New Years Eve. Oyster and corn chowder with mini corn muffins seemed like a good start to the meal. The chowder was a wonderful first course. The conversation flowed with a strong positive correlation to the flow of wine, provided by Melissa. We followed the chowder with hanger steak in shallot butter and a side of sauteed collard greens with bacon and finished the meal with JT's homemade buttermilk biscuit strawberry shortcake. Being New Years Eve, the wine at dinner was only the start of a night long bender that moved us from Melissa's small apartment in the West Village to another friend's apartment in Chelsea a few blocks away. We partied long and hard. The next day I was held responsible for hand prints on the ceiling, which I could neither confirm nor deny. Throughout the night I tried to check up on Melissa. This was the first time that Melissa was hanging out with Tim's friends solo and she seemed to be having a great time. When 'the drink' got the better of her I escorted her to a cab. When 'the drink' got the better of me I continued my routine of embarrassing break dancing and tomfoolery. That night will always hold a special place in my memory archive as will all the time that I spent with Melissa. Two years ago this month Melissa died. A sudden heart attack left her in the hospital for a week and a half, intubated and struggling to hold on to life. A week and a half was as long as she could hold on, in spite of how much her family, her then husband Tim, and all of our friends wanted to hold on to her for longer. During that week and a half I spent a lot of time in the ICU waiting room. I didn't know what I could do to help, but I knew if I could help I needed to be there. So I was there and I waited for an opportunity to help. Melissa taught me about friendship during that time. Not just what it means to be friends with her and attempt to use all of my strength to try and magically remove her from that hospital bed, but she showed me what a wonderful group of friends that I have. There was a constant entourage assembled in the ICU waiting room or at her bedside. Along a corridor of white walls and lonely patients there was one room full of pictures, posters and people. I would read to Melissa from the gossip mags or passages from her favorite author, Paul Auster, and Tim would play music for her from their wedding mix. There were many other regulars in the hospital as well. So many, in fact, that the nursing staff simply referred to Melissa as "the one with all the friends". On cool fall days or even on warm days when there's a chill in your heart nothing warms you up better than chowder. Enjoy a steamy bowl of oyster and corn chowder from this recipe by Jacques Pepin. Oyster and Corn Chowder from Jacques Pepin Celebrates 
Ingredients:
3 dozen oysters shucked
3 TBSP unsalted butter
1 medium leek, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
4 large garlic cloves, peeled, crushed, and finely chopped
3 cups milk
1 cup heavy cream
3 cups corn kernels (cut from 4 ears of corn)
salt
fresh ground pepper
1 TBSP minced chives
Heat the butter in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and leek and saute gently for 3 or 4 minutes.
to chop a leek Add the garlic and stir for30 seconds, and add the milk and cream. Bring to a strong boil, then add the corn, oysters and their liquid, salt and pepper to taste. Heat until the temperature reaches between 170 and 180 degrees F at the most. If any scum rises to the surface remove it with a skimmer. Add the chives and mix well. Serve with mini corn muffins, cornbread, oyster crackers, or nothing at all. For a heartier chowder add potatoes as well. Saute them at the beginning until they soften, then add the rest of the ingredients in the order listed above. |
