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04/23/2020 12:01 AMBy the time you read this, I have been sheltering in place for a month (and maybe you are, too). I had one doctor’s appointment (during which I decided that I would not have my hip replacement on March 30), have been to the supermarket about six times, and got dinner-to-go three times.
Being home doesn’t seem to bother me much. Because I love to read and have been reading on my Kindle for 11 years, I still make sure that I have one to read and two more in Kindle’s hopper.
I am watching much more television than I had ever before. I have HBO now and Hulu. I have had Amazon Prime and Netflix for years. And my cat watches television every night. She seems to enjoy Jeopardy and, because she sits on the sound bar right next in front of the television, I miss many of the “answers” on the screen. But she is a sweet little cat. She doesn’t want to see anyone but me and it took me almost three years before I could pet her, so I never shoo her away.
The first week of the coronavirus, I lost about nine pounds. Now that one week turned into four weeks, I have gained some of it back, I think. My neighbors asked me for Easter dinner, but because I may be immuno-supressed, I keep my distance from everyone. Sue and Bob left me a plate on my bench with sweet corn, mashed potatoes, and ham. It was delicious and I made me think about the sweet corn I froze last summer.
Tonight I am making corn chowder. I don’t have salt pork but I do have some bacon in the fridge. I don’t have fresh tarragon either, but I do have some fairly newish dried tarragon. This is one of my favorites.
Lee White of Old Lyme has been a food editor and restaurant reviewer for more than 25 years. You can email her at leeawhite@aol.com.
Corn ChowderAdapted a lot from an 1964 edition of Joy of Cooking
One of the best things about this recipe is there is no butter or heavy cream in this recipe. Sure, some salt pork for flavoring, but this is pretty healthy after all.
Yield: serves 6 to 8 as a main dish with a salad and maybe some good bread
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 to 8 ounces salt pork, diced
½ cup chopped onions
½ cup chopped celery
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 ½ cups peeled diced raw potatoes (with Yukon gold, you needn’t peel)
2 cups water
½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon paprika
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk*
6 to 8 ears of fresh corn, blanched for 2 minutes in boiling water, then drained in iced water
3 cups hot milk*
chopped fresh tarragon (fresh tarragon if you have it, dried if you don’t)
salt and pepper to taste
Pour oil into a heated heavy-bottomed stock pot, add salt pork, and sauté until browned. Add onions, celery, and green pepper and sauté until lightly brown, Add potatoes, water, salt, paprika, and bay leaf and simmer until potatoes are soft, around 15 minutes. Add flour and 1 cup of milk and stir until mixture is thick.
Remove kernels from ears and add kernels to stock pot, along with hot milk. Toss fresh chopped tarragon into soup. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
*I used 2 percent milk, but 1 percent might be fine