Mariner's Salmon Chowder

My Honey decided last week that she wanted some salmon chowder. Normally, she makes it herself, but I'm at home more now, and she's working, so I got the job of figuring out how to make it. I looked at all of her cookbooks, and couldn't find a single chowder recipe that called for salmon. Some of the ingredients for the other chowders didn't strike me as going well with salmon, either. Anyway, I improvised, and it turned out very well. I decided to put it out here, in case any of you might like to try it.

While I did research recipes for chowders from several sources, and you could say this one was inspired by them, I have to claim this one as my own. Like all successful efforts of this kind, it was actually developed by accident. Weights for canned foods are approximate. Makes about 2.5 quarts of chowder.

Ingredients:

salmon one 14 oz can drained, cleaned and flaked
whole kernel corn one 15 oz can  drained
diced potatoes one 15 oz can  drained
green onion 1 cup  chopped
chives 2 tbs  chopped, dried
celery, fresh 1 long stalk  cleaned, minced
dill 2 tsp
white wine 1 cup
whole milk 2 cup
heavy whipping cream 1/2 cup
butter 2 tbs
olive oil 2 tbs

Directions:

Combine onions, chives and celery in a sauce pan (make it a large one if you don't plan to finish in another pot!) and saute' over medium-high heat, in the butter and olive oil, until the onions caramelize and the celery is tender. Stir in the dill, and then deglaze with the white wine. Keep the pan at medium to medium-high heat, until volume is reduced by half.

To finish on the stove top: If you used a large saucepan, and want to finish on the stove top, reduce the heat to medium and fold in the corn, potatoes, and milk. Allow the mixture to return to a simmer, add the cream and the salmon. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes.

To finish in a slow cooker: While preparing the onions and celery, preheat the cooker with a small amount of water (less than 1/2 cup). Transfer the contents of the sauce pan to the slow cooker, and fold in, in order, corn, potatoes, milk, cream, and salmon. Stir throroughly, and cover. When the mixture begins to simmer, reduce heat to the low setting. Allow the cooker to continue for 30 to 45 minutes.

Serve in soup bowls. Goes well with Ritz™ crackers or Waverly Wafers™. Unused chowder refrigerates and reheats (especially in the microwave oven) well.

Mariner