Karen's New England Clam Chowder

Ingredients

 * a sneaky kitchen recipe from karen danielson:
 * 5 cans condensed cream of potato soup (10-3/4 oz.)
 * 6 cups fat free half-and-half
 * 10 oz. can whole baby clams, undrained
 * 1 tbsp dried minced onion
 * 1 tbsp dried parsley flakes
 * 1/2 tsp garlic powder
 * 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
 * hot sauce (to taste)
 * salt (to taste)
 * black pepper (to taste)
 * 2 tbsp butter, melted
 * minced fresh parsley

Directions
Heat soup with half-and-half in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add next 6 ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Simmer gently until thickened, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes. Drizzle butter on top. Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with the fresh minced parsley. If the chowder isn't thick enough to suit, you can do one of two things: * stir in instant potato flakes and keep adding and stirring until chowder reaches desired thickness, or, * stir in Wondra flour, a little at a time, and continue adding and stirring until chowder reaches the desired thickness. If thickening with flour, cook an additional 2-3 minutes so no raw flour taste remains. More details at http://sneakykitchen.com/Recipes/clam_chowder.htm