Clam Pasta

We saw a recipe in the New York Times and both of us were keen to make it. We love pasta and we have never made Clam Pasta With Basil and Hot Pepper. Robert had made similar dishes for us before, but we wanted to try to make it ourselves. This read like the one for us! We got our clams from McCall’s Meat and Fish and proceeded to make the recipe. It was excellent, no tricks just a good pasta.

We started with a Melon and Prosciutto Salad.

Clam Pasta With Basil and Hot Pepper

New York Times

TOTAL TIME

About 30 minutes

FOR THE BASIL PURÉE

1         cup basil leaves

1         cup Italian parsley leaves

3         garlic cloves, smashed to a paste

¼         cup olive oil

Salt and pepper

FOR THE PASTA

1         pound bucatini, spaghetti or linguine

3         tablespoons olive oil

2         garlic cloves, minced

½         teaspoon crushed fennel seed, optional

½         teaspoon peperoncino (hot red-pepper flakes)

4 pounds small clams, such as little neck or Manila, rinsed of sand

½         cup dry white wine

Basil leaves, for garnish

Lemon wedges.

PREPARATION

1.   Make the purée: Grind basil and parsley together in a food processor. (Alternatively, hand chop herbs or pound them in a mortar.) Add garlic paste and 1/4 cup olive oil and pulse to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

2.   Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a rapid boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions, taking care to keep pasta quite al dente. It’s best to use a timer, and drain pasta as soon as it’s done.

3.   While pasta is cooking, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy-bottomed wide pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic, fennel seed if using and pepperoncino, and let sizzle without browning, about 1 minute. Add clams, stirring to coat with a wooden spoon. Raise heat to high, add wine and put on the lid. Cook, covered, until all clams have opened, 5 to 7 minutes. Turn off heat. (Discard any clams that fail to open.)

4.   Add cooked pasta and basil purée to pot and toss gently to combine. Transfer to a serving bowl. Garnish with basil leaves and lemon wedges.

YIELD

4 to 6 servings.