leaving you "clam-ering" for more

Linguini with clam sauce

I have been, for quite a while now, afraid of preparing clams in their shells at home. They seem so finicky and a bit frightening, to tell you the truth. From what Ive heard, they only have about a 2 second window from being perfectly done to a chewy, bubble gum like mess. So I was quite pleased when these clams came out a-ok! I did my research by looking at other food blogs, referencing cookbooks (Gourmet and The Pasta Book) but finally came up with my own recipe that I found to be not only good but really good!
Here it is~

Linguine with clams a la Julia :)
12 clams (little necks)
1/2 very ripe and fresh tomato
1/2 med sweet onion diced thinly
zest of 1 lemon and 1/4 c chopped parsley
1 c saffron broth (from the paella, see post for broth recipe though chicken stock or clam juice could work in a snap)
1/4 c heavy cream
2 slices or rashers bacon (I used center cut lean but panchetta would prob work even better)
1 large clove garlic sliced thin
1/2 yellow pepper diced
1/2 box of good linguine cooked al dente
1/3 c white wine (used orvieto)

Cook pasta with plenty of water and salt. In a large pot, add bacon, onion and peppers until translucent and beginning to brown then add garlic. Let cook for about 1 min but don't let it burn! Add the white wine, clams, saffron broth and tomatoes. Cover pot and let cook for about 5 min until the clams open. Take the clams out of the liquid and keep warm on a plate w/ foil or a kitchen towel over them. Reduce liquid in the pan by 1/2 then add in cream. allow this to reduce until thick. When linguine is al dente, put the clams bk in the liquid and add the linguine to the sauce pot. Add about 1/2 c of linguine cooking liquid and continue to cook the pasta in the sauce. Once the sauce had adhered to the pasta and is rich but not too wet, taste for seasoning and add in the zest and parsley. Serve in hot bowls immediately with bread and salad.
xo J
linguini with clam cream sauce





+ This recipe may sound complicated but was supper quick and easy to make. Use whatever ingredients you have on hand and make it yours! Hope you love it also:)

The remains of the dip

crab dip

This sad pic demonstrates the remainder of the crab dip I made for a party at my husband's grandmother's house. She had guest in from Wa state and put me in charge of the app. All the food at the party was AMAZING (she made fried chicken, butter beans, fresh sliced tomatoes from her garden, rolls, coleslaw w/ apples and walnuts and corn on the cob. For desert, blondies, brownies, pound cake w/ peaches and watermelon) and showed true Virginia hospitality. Keeping with the Va and esp Chesapeake bay theme, I decided to make blue crab dip. I asked folks on chowhound to submit their fav. recipes and said that I would post the winner here so here is the recipe that I liked the most....I made it, but wasn't really happy with the end result so after this recipe I am posting the recipe I made for the party.

Crab dip recipe from chowhound.com

8oz cream cheese, softened approx. 8 oz. lump crab meat (varies depending on the type of meat available- lump, claw, "special"- I use more if the pieces are small)

1 small or 1/2 medium onion minced

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1 tsp old bay seasoning

1 clove garlic minced

1 tbsp lemon juices

s &p to taste

This recipe was good but not what I had in mind, I wanted something less tangy and smoother. The recipe I served came for a local cook book called Culinary Artists (hope I don't get in trouble for posting this, but think the book is out of print so shouldn't matter) and is from Toques creative catering in Va. Beach

Warm Artichoke-crab cheese dip

*1 lb softened cream cheese

1 c mayo (Hellman's)

1/2 c grated parm

1/2 c grated Gruyere or Swiss (I used and Italian cheese blend because I had it on hand)

1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbl lemon juice

1 tsp garlic powder

dash Tabasco

1 (13 0z) can artichoke hearts (I used 1/2 pkg frozen and chopped hearts instead)

1 bunch green onions (I used grated onion juice instead)

1 lb lump crab meat (I used backfin)

crackers or bagel chips

*preheat oven to 350

in a mixing bowl whip cream cheese until smooth. add mayo and blend. Add cheese, Worcestershire, lemon, garlic and Tabasco. blend all ingredients until incorporated. Fold in artichokes, crab meat and green onion. Place all ingredients into an ovenproof casserole dish. Bake in oven until bubbly and golden brown. (i topped w/ a little extra parm, some parsley and a little old bay seasoning)

This was hands down the best crab dip I have ever had...people that tried it that didn't like crab loved it and asked for the recipe! Very fatty but def worth the calories!