Quail 07 bg 041506.jpg Chowder is any of a variety of soups, enriched with salt pork fatback and thickened with flour, or more traditionally with crushed ship biscuit or saltine crackers, and milk. To some Americans, it means clam chowder, made with cream or milk in most places, or with tomato as "Manhattan clam chowder." Corn chowder is a thick soup filled with whole corn (maize) kernels. Chowder is often commonly associated with New England cuisine.

The most accepted etymology for the word chowder comes from the pot in which it is cooked. The French word chaudière translated means "a pot," developed from chaud, "hot" (also related to the Latin Calderia and English Cauldron). The word "chowder" is a New England word that came from Newfoundland, where Breton fishermen — who would throw portions of the day's catch and other available foods into a large pot — introduced the word, and perhaps the fish soup itself (compare bouillabaisse). Another possible origin for the word Chowder is derived from the Old English "jowter", which means fishmonger (one who peddles fish).

The recipe below for "New England chowder" is a fish chowder, which along with corn and clam chowder continues to enjoy popularity in New England.

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L.A. Times - Food & Dining

Harissa, mon amour
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:26:34 -0700
North Africa's favorite chile sauce is fiery, but also wonderfully nuanced. What's not to love, this September 2007 article asks. This is an ode to harissa. It's replaced my ketchup, my salsa picante, even (gasp) my Louisiana hot sauce. I put it on everything. Well, not exactly everything, but the potent North African chile sauce goes into my bean soups and sandwiches, it spikes my aioli and tops my pizzas. I even take it on road trips, as a kind of food insurance, where it's done wonders for roadside hamburgers and omelets, even stadium Dodger dogs.
Entertaining with an entree-free dinner
Wed, 03 Sep 2008 15:30:14 -0700
The starters will last all night at this small-plates party. You gather with family and friends in the evening as the heat of the day starts to fade and the first cool ocean breezes begin to blow in, thick and sweet as honey. The bright white light of afternoon gradually dims to twilight's shades of blue and gray. In the air hangs the summer garden smells of baked earth and herbs.
Sprinkles is frosted over cupcake newcomer Sprinkled Pink
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700
The Beverly Hills-based chain, which has taken legal action against other rivals, demands a name change by the Montecito bakery. Starting a business is no piece of (cup)cake. Just ask two of the newest bakeries to open in Southern California.

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