New England Classic Recipes
Put your summer staples to good use in a variety of dishes
Clam chowder, beans, cider doughnuts -— all the perfect New England, and New Hampshire, summer flavors that celebrate our state and the season. Yankee Magazine Senior Food Editor Amy Traverso and the Yankee Magazine team created the following recipes to reflect the historic nature of the region in taste and tradition. Check out newengland.com for more classics from appetizers to dessert to dip your spoons and spatulas into!
New England Clam Chowder
Photo by abu / adobestock
Makes 8 to 10 servings
Homemade clam chowder is one of those recipes that every New Englander with a stove and even a mild interest in cooking should master. Fortunately, it’s one of the easiest dishes to make.
Ingredients
3 strips thick-cut bacon
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 rib celery, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 bay leaves
2 medium-size white potatoes, peeled
and cut into ¼-inch cubes
½ cup all-purpose flour
4 cups bottled clam juice, divided
1 pound chopped fresh clam meat, with juices
Kosher salt to taste
3 cups light cream
1 teaspoon white pepper
Instructions
Set a 4- to 6-quart pot over medium-low heat. Add the bacon and cook, turning occasionally, until crisp, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the bacon, leaving the fat in the pot, and crumble into small pieces; set aside.
Add the butter, onion, celery, thyme and bay leaves to the pot. Cook, stirring often, until onions
are tender and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Return the bacon to the pot and stir. Reduce the heat
to low and cook, stirring occasionally, while you prepare the potatoes.
In a 2- to 3-quart pot on high heat, boil the diced potatoes in salted water until tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Turning back to the onion/bacon mixture, increase the heat to medium-low.
Add the flour gradually, stirring continuously, until a thick paste forms. Stir and cook 5 minutes.
Increase the heat to medium and slowly add the bottled clam juice, 1 cup at a time, incorporating
it into the mixture before adding more.
Increase the heat to medium-high and add the potatoes and clam meat with its juices. Keep stirring 5 minutes, until the clams are tender.
Add the cream slowly; then stir in the white pepper.
Discard the bay leaves before serving. Serve hot.
Cider Doughnut Muffins Makes 12 muffins
Photo by Carl Tremblay / Styling by Catrine Kelty
These fantastic cider doughnut muffins pack all the flavor of apple cider doughnuts without the fuss and the frying. Yum!
Muffin Ingredients
2 cups sweet apple cider
½ cup unsalted butter, softened,
plus more for pan
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1¼ teaspoons ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon table salt
Topping Ingredients
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 375° and set a rack to the middle position. Lightly grease a standard 12-cup muffin pan and set aside.
Put the apple cider in a large saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and simmer until the liquid is reduced to 1 cup. Set aside to cool.
Using a standing or handheld mixer, cream the butter with the sugar in a large bowl at medium speed until fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, blending well after each. Add the vanilla extract and blend.
In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add a third of this mixture to the butter mixture and beat just to combine. Add half the reduced cider and beat to combine. Repeat with another third of the flour mixture, then the rest of the cider, then the remaining flour mixture. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups and transfer to the oven. Bake until tops are firm and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 15 to 17 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes.
Instructions
Now, prepare the topping: In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the sugar and cinnamon. As soon as the muffins are cool enough to handle, brush their tops and sides with butter, then roll in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Boston Style Baked Beans Makes 8 servings
Photo by Mary Nairi
Ingredients
1 pound (2 cups) dried navy beans
½ pound salt pork or bacon, chopped, divided
⅓ cup granulated sugar
⅔ cup dark molasses
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 teaspoon table salt
Instructions
Soak beans overnight in cold water. When you’re ready to cook, place beans in a heavy saucepan; fill with water to cover by about a half inch. Boil 25-30 minutes, until just tender; don’t overcook. (Pick up a bean between thumb and forefinger and pinch; the outer shell should slip off.) Drain and rinse, reserving the liquid.
Preheat oven to 400°. Place half the salt pork in the bottom of a large ovenproof pot. Add beans, sugar, molasses, dry mustard, white pepper, salt and reserved liquid. Top with remaining salt pork. Cover and bake 4 to 4½ hours. Stir occasionally and add more water as needed. Let beans rest 30 minutes before serving.
New England Boiled Dinner Makes 8 servings
Photo by Saul Osagsa
Ingredients
4 pounds corned beef
15 peppercorns
8 whole garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
1 head cabbage, cut into 8 wedge-shaped pieces
8 small beets
2 turnips, cut into pieces
16 small new potatoes, peeled
16 baby carrots
8 small white onions
Instructions
Cover beef with water and simmer 10 minutes, covered, in a large kettle. Skim off and discard the residue that forms on top of water. Add peppercorns, cloves and bay leaf. Cover and simmer 3 hours or until meat is tender.
Put beets in separate pan with a little water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 30 minutes.
Add turnips, potatoes, carrots and onions to kettle with meat. Simmer, covered, 15 minutes longer.
Add cabbage and cook, covered, 15 minutes more.
Remove meat, cut into serving pieces and place on platter surrounded with well-drained vegetables.
Serve with Irish soda bread.
