Presidential Recipes

Recently, to commemorate President's Day, someone sent me an article from the International Falls Daily Journal. They had dutifully collected several president's favorite recipes. And with me in the midst of this "who are your presidents?" series, I thought I would share. It also takes some of the pressure of finding a new recipe each week. So let's start with my favorite president. Text in this and successive recipes comes from the newspaper article, which is no longer (to my knowledge) available online.

John F. Kennedy - New England Fish Chowder

According to chefs who worked in the White House, President Kennedy was a "soup, sandwich and fruit" man for lunch, but always soup though. New England Fish Chowder was a favorite. It was said Kennedy was a small eater; he often had to be reminded that it was dinner time . . . politics always took preference over food.

• 1/4 lb. salt pork diced
  
• 2 onions, sliced or diced
  
• 4 cups potatoes, cut into small pieces
  
• 1-2 cups water
  
• 2 lbs.haddock or cod fillets, cut up
  
• 1 heaping tsp. salt
  
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
  
• 1/4 tsp. Accent (optional)
  
• 2 cups whole milk
  
• 1 12-oz. can evaporated milk
  

Fry salt pork in bottom of large kettle until golden brown. Remove pork bits and set aside. There should be about 3 tablespoons of fat in the kettle (or Dutch oven). Add onions and cook slowly until wilted and yellowed (but not brown). Place potatoes in, and then the fish on top. Add seasonings. Add water to the top of the potatoes. Bring to a boil, then cook on low until potatoes are cooked. Pour in both kinds of milk and allow to heat thoroughly but not boil.