This is the recipe you’ve been looking for, brave Annierans! If you are a fan of the Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson, you no doubt have wondered what exactly Cheesy Chowder or Butterbread tastes like. We are introduced to this comfort food staple made by Podo Helmer and for his hungry grandkids in first book, On the Edge of The Dark Sea of Darkness.
It turns out, Peterson ate a “Cheesy Chowder” that his own mother made for him back in the day, and that he makes for his own family. If you would like to check out his mom’s version (which uses ham rather than chicken) head over to the official Wingfeather website. Our family isn’t a big fan of ham, and I have added a few minor recipe tweaks. Otherwise, I have tried to make this a true to what ol’ Podo would have made!
Also, I have created a recipe for “Butterbread” which we think totally makes the meal. I hope you enjoy!
Cheesy Chowder (with Chicken)
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups diced potatoes
- 1/2 cup diced carrot
- 1/2 cup celery thin sliced and chopped
- 1/2 cup onion finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Cheese Sauce
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 cups finely shredded cheese (we prefer the a blend of cheddar, colby, and asadero cheese, but just mild cheddar works fine)
- 2 cups cubed cooked chicken (pulled rotisserie chicken works great too, just make sure to cut into bite size chunks)
Instructions
- In a large sauce pan or a soup pot, bring the water, vegetables, salt and pepper to a boil. Reduce to a low boil/high simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make cheese sauce by melting butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir to combine and mixture (roux) starts bubbling. Slowly add milk about 1/2 at a time, whisking into mixture. You are aiming for a smooth sauce that has enough thickness to coat a spoon. Add garlic and stir this white sauce, cooking for 2-3 minutes until smooth. Slowly add cheese, melting until fully incorporated into white sauce. Sauce will thicken up quite a bit…but never fear!
- Skim off any foam/veggie scum that may have formed on liquid and veg boil; Stir cheese sauce into the liquid and veg, mixing well to combine. Add in chicken and heat over medium-low to heat chicken through.
Butterbread
Ingredients
Yeast Blooming
- 1 pkg active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 cups milk warmed to 110°-120°F
Dough Forming
- 4½ tbsp sugar
- 1½ tsp salt
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
Baking
- non-stick spray
- 1/2 cup butter
Instructions
- In bowl of stand mixer, combine the Yeast Blooming ingredients (yeast, 1 tsp sugar, warm milk). Mix a small bit, allow to stand 15 minutes until yeast starts blooming.
- In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, salt, sugar). Attach dough hook to stand mixer. Add dry ingredients to bloomed yeast, and start mixer on low speed. Add eggs, and allow to incorporate. Add melted butter and allow hook to mix/kneed dough until smooth and slightly sticky, about 5 minutes on low speed.
- Coat the inside a large bowl with oil or non-stick spray. Place dough in bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel, and set aside in a warm area to rise, about 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Turn dough out onto floured surface. Divide into half. Place each half into loaf pans coated on the inside with oil or non-stick spray. Cover and allow to rise another 15-20 minutes.
- Bake loaves for 15 minutes. Then pour butter over the top of each loaf. Bake for an additional 15-25 minutes until tops are browned.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing loaves from pans and onto cooling racks.