Asian Clam Chowder with Oyster Mushrooms

Asian Clam Chowder: this New England classic gets an Asian twist with the use of water chestnuts and oyster mushrooms. Sponsored by the Mushroom Council.

I cannot believe that I am just about done with week 4 of my Mushroom Ambassadorship for Mamavation’s 30-Day Mushroom Challenge. It has certainly been a whole lotta fun cooking with (and eating!) all kinds of mushrooms for the past month. The hubby and I always adored mushrooms and we have at least one child as a mushroom convert, too.

The experience with the Mamavation crew has been fabulous. They are a wonderful, supportive group. Mr. Bookieboo’s workouts sucked were awesome and kicked my butt. But I found the 10K steps to be really challenging. I found going to the gym to be more productive in my get-in-shape plan versus the 10K steps.

But the whole learning process was great, as I found myself wanting to go the gym – something that has been lacking my life for the past year!

Corrine’s menus were a great guide and her advice to listen to my body, feel the hunger and snack have really transformed me. I always knew what I needed to eat and how I needed to workout to get into shape. My mindset, though, was another matter.

I am an emotional eater.

I cannot remember a time where I WASN’T an emotional eater. These past 30-days have taught me to really, REALLY pay attention to my hunger cues and food hankerings. I know I crave sweets in the afternoons, so I reach for a banana as my treat. Every now and then, I have a bite of dark chocolate.

I learned to forgive myself as I didn’t get to work out last week due to a nasty cold that swept through my family. Huh? Forgive myself for getting sick? Forgive my children for getting sick? What’s to forgive? These little setbacks to my workout goals have always derailed me and deflated me.

Having the support of my fellow Mad Mushroom Bloggers has helped tremendously. We are all moms and we are all struggling with sick kids, homework blues and downright chaotic lives. If a workout doesn’t happen, there truly is another chance at it tomorrow.

I’m taking baby steps to adjusting my mindset, but I’m definitely moving in the right direction. I’ve only lost 2 pounds this past month, but I feel so much better after this terrific learning process.

Now on to the FOOD!

I shared my Portobello and Asparagus Quiche with you this week. Of course, the family always enjoys Salisbury Steak lathered in mushrooms, so that was a big crowd pleaser. I also braised some baby artichokes and mushrooms (recipe coming next week) and served that up with a simple roasted chicken – deeelish!

The recipe I’m sharing with you today, is my Asian-inspired Clam Chowder.

A few months ago, my parents and I enjoyed lunch out. I saw on the menu “Japanese Clam Chowder” and I was intrigued. All three of us ordered a bowl and slurped the whole thing up. I knew I wanted to try to recreate it at home. I finally did last week.

I used a little miso broth and mixed in some half-and-half. Instead of potatoes, I used water chestnuts. I also added oyster mushrooms. A little touch of fish sauce and the soup was complete.

“You need to cook with water chestnuts more often,” the hubby commented.”I like how they always CRUNCH!”

Cool. He liked it.

We are ending our 30-day challenge with a twitter party! Join us Tuesday April 8th, from 6-7:30pm PST (9-10:30pm EST) for our #MushroomMakeover Twitter Party where we will check in and hear status updates from each of the 30 Day Weight Loss Challenge bloggers, talk about the meals that they were able to create during the challenge, and learn more about how to make over our meals with mushrooms.

Disclosure: This post was created as part of the #MushroomMakeover 30 Day Weight Loss Challenge in which I received a stipend to be the blogger ambassador for the Mushroom Council. The opinions are my own and based on my own experience. If I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t blog about it.