Vongole Mediterranio Baked Clams Rice With Saff Food

VONGOLE MEDITERRANIO (BAKED CLAMS & RICE WITH SAFFRON)

Steps:

• Place clams in a pot with wine and garlic, cover and steam the clams for 5 - 6 minutes (until they open).
• Please, discard any clams that do not open -- they are bad.
• Drain the pot, reserving the liquid and remove the clam meat from the shells. Leave some clams in the shell for garnishing.
• Set the clams aside.
• Strain the clam liquid in a sieve that has been lined with cheese cloth, linen or a muslin cloth and reserve the clam liquid.
• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
• Saute the onion in butter in an ovenproof casserole for 2 - 3 minutes.
• Add the rice and saffron to the casserole dish and gently stir to coat with butter.
• Next add the chicken stock and clam liquid to the dish and bring to a boil. Stir the rice once, reduce the heat and cover the dish.
• Place the casserole dish in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.
• Remove the casserole dish from the oven and uncover, add the clams and butter to the dish, gently mixing together.
• Re-cover the casserole dish , return to oven and bake for 7 minutes more.
• Remove dish from oven, uncover, sprinkle with the scallions, garnish with the reserved clams in shell and serve immediately.
• A wonderful light meal, served with fruit salad.

PASTA ALLE VONGOLE

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large saute pan with a tight-fitting lid over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and pepper flakes and saute until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown. Add the white wine and clams, increase the heat to high and cover the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until all of the clams have opened, about 8 minutes. As the clams open, transfer them to a large bowl. When all of the clams are removed, reduce the heat to medium low, add the oregano and swirl in the butter. Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, bring a pot of generously salted water to a boil. Cook the linguine according to the package direction. Using tongs, transfer the linguine to the saute pan with the clam juice and toss to coat. Turn off the heat and add the clams and any juices that have collected in the bowl. Using tongs, turn the linguine to coat it with the sauce. Top with parsley. Serve immediately.

BAKED CLAMS ON THE HALF SHELL: VONGOLE GRATINATE AL FORNO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Scrub the clams under cold running water.
• Pry them open and rinse out any sand or grit.
• Gently separate the top and bottom shells, loosening and allowing the clam to divide, with some remaining on the top shell and some remaining on the bottom shell.
• Use a knife to loosen the clam in the shell, removing any sand or grit that may have been under the clam. All of the clams may not divide evenly between the top and bottom shell. Cut these clams into small pieces and distribute among the other shells. You should have at least 16 clamshell halves to fill and bake. Arrange the clam-filled shells on a baking sheet and set aside.
• In a small bowl, toss together the bread crumbs, parsley, and garlic. Use a fork to stir the olive oil into this mixture. It should be moist but not oily. Set aside.
• Fill each clam with a portion of the topping mixture, spreading it evenly over the clam to the edge of the shell. The filling should be about 1/8-inch thick.
• Bake until the topping begins to brown slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and adjust oven temperature to broil. Place the clams under the broiler and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

VONGOLE MEDITERRANIO (BAKED CLAMS & RICE WITH SAFF

Steps:

• 1. Place clams in a pot with wine and garlic, cover and steam the clams for 5 - 6 minutes (until they open).
• 2. Please, discard any clams that do not open -- they are bad.
• 3. Drain the pot, reserving the liquid and remove the clam meat from the shells.
• 4. Leave some clams in the shell for garnishing.
• 5. Set the clams aside.
• 6. Strain the clam liquid in a sieve that has been lined with cheese cloth, linen or a muslin cloth and reserve the clam liquid.
• 7. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
• 8. Saute the onion in butter in an ovenproof casserole for 2 - 3 minutes.
• 9. Add the rice and saffron to the casserole dish and gently stir to coat with butter.
• 10. Next add the chicken stock and clam liquid to the dish and bring to a boil.
• 11. Stir the rice once, reduce the heat and cover the dish.
• 12. Place the casserole dish in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.
• 13. Remove the casserole dish from the oven and uncover, add the clams and butter to the dish, gently mixing together.
• 14. Re-cover the casserole dish , return to oven and bake for 7 minutes more.
• 15. Remove dish from oven, uncover, sprinkle with the scallions, garnish with the reserved clams in shell and serve immediately.
• 16. A wonderful light meal, served with fruit salad.

SPAGHETTI ALLE VONGOLE

Steps:

• Bring 3 quarts water to a boil in a 5 quart pot. Season lightly with salt; add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until about 2 minutes before tender. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking water.
• Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook, swirling pan often, until just golden. Add red pepper flakes and continue cooking 15 more seconds. Add wine, then clams; increase heat to high. Cover skillet and cook until clams open and release their juices, 3-6 minutes, depending on size of clams. As clams open, use tongs to transfer them to a bowl.
• Add 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta water to skillet; bring to a boil. Add pasta to pan. Cook over high heat, tossing constantly, until pasta is al dente and has soaked up some of the sauce from the pan. Add clams and any juices from bowl to pan, along with parsley, and toss to combine. (Add more pasta water if sauce seems dry.) Transfer pasta to warm bowls and drizzle with remaining oil.

FRESH BAKED CLAMS

Steps:

• Put clams in a large kettle or clam pot with the water; cook over moderate heat, just until the shells open.
• Remove from the heat and when cool enough to handle, pluck the whole clams from the shells; save half the shells.
• Meanwhile, blend together the butter, garlic, parsley and bread crumbs.
• Set each clam back into a half shell and spread about a teaspoon of the mixture atop each clam in a shell.
• Arrange filled shells in a baking dish and broil 4" from the heat source until lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes.
• Serve with lemon wedges.