Nuts & Chowder

From husband Bill, February 25, 2026, at home

Chocolate-covered almonds are OK, but I prefer chocolate-covered cashews.

From husband Bill, February 25, 2026, at home

I like Manhattan clam chowder, but New England clam chowder is nice, too.

Sometime in the mid-1980s or so, I voted for the best chowder at a chowder contest on the Jersey Shore, specifically Long Beach Island. I only voted for the Manhattan version by placing a poker chip in a jar at the restaurant booth with what I thought was the best chowder. I didn't vote for the New England version because, being from Long Island, New York, near Manhattan, I didn't consider myself as a competent judge of New England clam chowder because it was never my go-to chowder, and also, I wanted to keep the poker chip as a souvenir. I still tasted several contestants.

Many thanks go to my university buddy/fraternity brother Jim and his family for inviting me. During several summers in the 1980s, they would rent a cottage on the Jersey Shore and invite me occasionally to spend a few weekends with them there.

We have a fraternity brother Bill whose nickname is "Chowder" because he's from Boston.

(Of course, the photo below is the New England version. The Manhattan version is based in tomatoes.)