Blue Penguin Chowder

Blue Penguin Chowder, ready to go!

Toot has made her Blue Penguin Chowder for our supper tonight. I hasten to add that no penguins died in the making of this soup!

Toot and I first ate a fish based chowder many years ago, in a restaurant on South Island, New Zealand.  It had been a 'freezing' day with some snow falling and we had become very cold after making an extended visit to the Blue Penguin Colony at Oamaru.

We very much liked the penguins and the chowder, so when we returned home to England, Toot set about developing her own version of a fish chowder.

"Love that chowder its real fishy"

Ingredients:
	Soup	4 diced carrots
		12 to 16 small new potatoes diced into 12mm. cubes
		1 strip of celery chopped ( do not use too much as will overwhelm the dish)
		1 cubed pre-roasted sweet potato (and/or  a similar sized piece of squash)
		1 small tin of sweetcorn
		1 cup of frozen peas
		1 clove of garlic
		I steak of meaty white fish (halibut or cod)
		2 cups of mixed shellfish,(crayfish, prawns and or squid)
		1 handful of chopped fresh English parsley
		150 millilitres of single cream
	Paste	1 slice of white bread with crust removed and crumbed
		1 handful of torn fresh basil
		4 tbs of olive oil
		1/4 tsp of chilli powder
		2 tbs of tomato puree
		3 tsp of sugar
		Salt and pepper to taste
	Warning	Pappa and Toot had similar soup for the first time after visiting the penguin
		colony on New Zealand's South Island. This dish does not contain penguin

Method:
	Making the thickening paste ('Rouille')
1	Place the bread crumbs in a bowl and add the olive oil, tomato paste and sugar.
2	Crush or chop the garlic finely and add to the bowl.
3	Add the chilli powder.
4	With a spoon mix the ingredients until a smooth paste is formed.
5	Add the torn basil and mix into the paste.
	Put aside for later use as a thickening agent for the soup.
	Making the soup
1	Take a heavy pan or wok. Cook the carrots and celery for 4 to 5 minutes, with just
	enough water to cover them.
2	Put the fish steak on top of the cooked celery and carrots and cook the fish turning once.
	The fish takes about 5 minutes and turns milky white when done. Remove fish from the
	pan and keep on a separate plate for use later.
3	Add the diced potatoes and the cubed pre-roasted sweet potato and/or squash.
	Cook until the potatoes are just tender (usually about 5 to 7 minutes)
4	Add the peas and the sweetcorn to the pan
5	Gently stir in the Rouille
6	Flake the fish steak and add to the pan with the shelfish and parsley
	Heat the shellfish over a low heat until warmed through
7	Gently stir in the cream being careful not to boil
	The trick to this dish is not to have too much liquid!
	Spoon off any liquid that fills more than half the pan.
	Serve in dishes with crusty bread or Toot's Bruscetta.
	A Sauvignon Blanc goes well with this dish
	...........Or for a really slutty sixties feel open a bottle of Blue Nun

 "Tonight I are be mostly drinking Isla Negra Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon Rose"