I'm Lucky

I consider myself lucky for lots of reasons, but today it’s because I have a kid who cooks really good food for me. Ryan enjoys being in the kitchen, and since John’s garden happens to be at Ryan’s house, we usually head over there once a week. While John checks the garden, Ryan makes us lunch. (Our soil here in New Jersey has untreatable verticillium wilt that makes it unsuited for a garden here and is also slowly killing our trees, but that’s a sad story for another day.)

We used to go out to diners, but no matter what we ordered, Ryan would usually say he could make it better. (And honestly, he’s right.) These days he often asks if there’s anything we’re hungry for, and I usually tell him it’s chef’s choice - whatever he feels like making is fine with me. He’s made us omelets, egg salad, grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, hamburgers, sausage corn chowder, “supper on a bread slice” (a dish my mother used to make, but Ryan’s version is much improved), and his absolutely stellar onion soup gratinée.

Last week I was grumbling about a disappointing canned clam chowder I’d tried, and Ryan offered to make some from scratch. He watched Jacques Pépin (I’m not sure clam chowder really needs leeks or corn like Jacques adds) and then checked out a few more videos on youtube. He decided the method was similar to sausage corn chowder, just with clams and clam juice instead. So that’s what I was served for lunch yesterday, along with Ryan's special cheese toast. 

And of course, it was fantastic! I've never had homemade clam chowder before, and it turns out the canned stuff doesn’t even come close. Ryan’s version had onions, garlic, celery, potatoes, butter, half-and-half, bacon, clams, clam juice, chives, parsley, a little hot sauce, and plenty of seasoning. I'm not sure whether this is my favorite or if his onion soup wins, but I will take either one of them any time he is willing to make them.

And one of the best parts?

Ryan sent me home with the leftovers. I am, without a doubt, very lucky.