Recipe and Photograph by Vivienne

This soup, or chowder, has had rave reviews from my family so clearly it is as good as I say. It’s magnificent.   Please do not try to substitute any of the ingredients because I can’t possibly guarantee the flavour, the yummy scale or the look.

 Ingredients

• 60 g butter
• 1 big or two small rashers of bacon
• half a large or one whole leek
• 1 carrot
• 1 celery stalk
• 1 large potato
• 3 dessert spoons of wholemeal plain flour
• 5 cups of stock made with Massel Vegetable powder (about 5 teaspoons altogether)
• 16 – 20 Tasmanian scallops (they’re fresh and available now)
• 300g of raw prawns (Aussie)
• 1 whole prepared fresh calamari/squid
• 150-200 g cream
• parsley and chives
• salt and pepper

Finely chop all the vegies and the bacon.

Using large Le Creuset pan/pot – melt the butter and fry bacon over low heat (cook it, don’t crisp it) and then remove and set aside.

Into the butter add all the vegies and cook over medium heat stirring all the while for about 5 minutes until they are softened.

Add the flour and cook for a minute then gradually add the warm stock. Cook and stir for a further 5 or so minutes until it boils and thickens, then simmer for another 10 minutes giving it a bit of a stir. Then whiz gig it until relatively smooth.

Leave scallops whole, cut prawns into 3 or four pieces and thinly slice the squid (and cut into 2-3 cm lengths). Add all the seafood and the prepared bacon to the pan and keep on low simmer until seafood is cooked.

Now taste for seasoning. It didn’t need much salt. Add the finely chopped chives and parsley (about tablespoon) and stir in the cream.

Serve with a sprinkle of parsley/chives for garnish and some sour dough bread rolls.