4 strips of bacon - Maybe a few extra if you like to garnish your chowder
1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 small cans of clams, undrained - I really like Bar Harbor All Natural Chopped Clams, 6.5-Ounce Cans (Amazon link). If you buy 12 cans through subscribe and save it’s as low as $2.22 a can. Amazon prices can change. (If you are a Costco shopper, use about half of large can from Costco, freeze the rest)
3 carrots, diced
6 celery stalks, diced
1 medium red potato, diced - I added two. I love potatoes in soup.
4 cups chicken or veggie broth
½ – 1 tsp ground thyme
sale and pepper to taste
½ cup half and half
¼ cup hot water
4 tb corn starch
Instructions
Fry up your bacon – drain, reserving 2 tb of drippings
Saute the onion and garlic in the bacon drippings until golden.
Dump everything up to the spices in your 4- to 5-quart slow cooker and stir it all up.
Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 5 hours.
Half an hour before you plan to eat, dump in the half and half, stir it up and replace the lid.
minutes before you plan to eat, combine the hot water and corn starch and add to the crockpot. Stir it and crank the slow cooker to high if it’s not already there. Don’t put the lid back on.
Enjoy!
Recipe by A Happy Hive at https://ahappyhive.com/slow-cooker-clam-chowder/