Chowder

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This soup stands on its own as a main course when paired with a green salad and some crusty bread.

Puréeing the corn with low-fat milk gives the soup a creamy texture. Serve it as a starter or as a light main course with a green salad and crusty bread.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

If you can't find pancetta, you can substitute regular bacon.

If you can't find fresh lobsters, frozen lobster meat can be used.

Chilies add a southwestern twist to this traditional chowder.

The tofu in this chowder provides a richness surprisingly similar to that of cream but without the fat and cholesterol. Your guests will never know the difference; our tasters didn't. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. If you prefer your soup a little thicker, crush 6 saltines into fine crumbs and add them at the end of the procedure, when you add the crab.

When returning the chopped clams to the pot, try not to heat them for too long, or they will toughen up.

Treat yourself to fresh clams for this recipe — they make all the difference. This dish originated in Rhode Island during the late 19th century, when, as story has it, Portuguese immigrants added tomatoes to their chowder. British New Englanders believed their creamy chowder to be superior and named the Portuguese version after Manhattan, presuming that New Yorkers were the only people crazy enough to add tomatoes.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Lane Crowther, A contributing editor at Bon Appétit, says that "For twenty-five years our family endured side dishes of canned creamed corn and sweetened baked squash—simply for the sake of tradition. With this soup, I was finally able to convince everyone that a few classic Thanksgiving ingredients (like corn and squash) could be combined in a delicious new way."

Although we feature smoked fish in this chowder, the recipe works equally well with fresh fillets of such white fish as cod, haddock, halibut, or snapper.